Love and Death in the time of the Cataclysm
by happycat12
Summary: Section D is facing destruction as the end of the world looms. Romance/ Post Apocalypse.
1. Chapter 1

Lucas awoke with a start to the noise of a persistent beeping coming from his phone and blearily leaned over to read the incoming text, "Situation critical – Status 1. Come in immediately."

Only one thing registered in his sluggish mind. They had a Status 1 emergency. The highest threat level possible. It took a few seconds to process that idea and his next conscious thought was to wonder what time was it. It felt ….early. Lucas focused and looked at his alarm clock - 4:05am. He had been right. He picked up his phone and texted back, "Message received – on my way."

He hauled himself out of bed and quickly threw some clothes on before collecting his keys and heading out the door.

**

He arrived at Thames House to find Ros and Malcolm already there, both silently nursing cups of coffee. Ros looked tense and unusually pale. When he entered, she looked up at him, and visibly collected herself, then snapped, "Meeting Room. Now!"

She began to talk almost as soon as they entered the meeting room. "Jo's still coming – we'll start without her, given the urgency of the situation."

Lucas and Malcolm nodded.

"Right," Ros started, looking grim. "Harry can't be with us. He is presently in a meeting of the JIC being briefed on the situation."

"We will have Dr Jamal Prasad joining us shortly via speaker phone to help brief us on today's events. Dr Prasad is the technical advisor to the Government's chief metrological advisor, Dr Rachel Pettinger. Dr Pettinger is otherwise engaged with the JIC."

Just then a rather harassed looking Jo silently entered the meeting room and sat down quietly, giving her full attention to Ros. Ros didn't bother to greet her and continued onwards.

"What I can tell you," she began grimly. "Is that a little over an hour ago Cumbre Vieja volcano erupted in the Canary Isles, causing a lump of rock twice the size of the Isle of Man to slide into the sea floor."

"It is my understanding that this event has set off a chain of events which now cannot be stopped and will result in a massive wave, a mega tsunami the like of which we have never seen before emanating throughout the entire Atlantic."

Looking at the rest of the team she could see the shock registering on their faces as they processed this information.

"What can we expect as a result of this tsunami? –" Malcolm began, only to be interrupted by Ros saying curtly, "Dr Prasad will tell us more."

"Dr Prasad?' Ros said, leaning over the phone. "So good of you to join us. Could you begin to explain today's events."

"Yes, certainly," he replied briefly. "At 3.15 this morning Cumbre Vieja volcano erupted, causing a massive landslide into the Atlantic ocean. As a consequence of this a tsunami over 300 foot high and traveling at over 400 miles per hour is expected to hit the coast of Africa around now."

He paused and then continued soberly, "Unfortunately Africa is the least of our worries. The tsunami will create a massive ripple effect throughout the Atlantic. In less than two hours waves of up to 20 metres are expected to reach the coast of Spain and Portugal causing complete devastation of the coastal settlements there and the area some miles inland. There will be a similar effect on the French coastline shortly after. Three hours after reaching Spain, at 9:25am the Southwest coast of England is expected to be hit with surges of up to 13 metres high, which will obliterate almost everything in their path. Other parts of the coastline will be hit with swells that are smaller but are still expected to cause significant flooding and loss of life."

"In London the tidal surge is expected to travel up the Thames at more than 200 miles per hour and to raise water levels by as much as 20 feet. The force of the water and the resultant flooding is likely to cause massive devastation and loss of life throughout the centre of the city. The entire underground will be submerged, as would the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace, Power stations and substations, schools and hospitals and around 40% of the surface area of the city."

"Within a few hours of the tsunami hitting the UK, it will devastate the coast of America. Waves of up to 50 metres are expected to hit first Boston, then New York, Miami, the Carribean and Brazil and to penetrate the coastline for up to ten miles inland. The entire eastern seaboard of Canada, America and South America will be wiped out. The cities along these coasts will cease to exist and their populations will be obliterated. Other cities bordering the Atlantic will also be affected. Storm surges affecting these cities won't be as high as elsewhere so the destruction won't be complete but there is likely to be widespread flooding, devastation and the loss of life at a level that is completely unprecedented."

The team had been listening in complete silence to this information, struggling to comprehend the magnitude of the disaster they faced.

Lucas was the first to raise his voice and break the shocked silence by asking quietly, "Has anyone calculated how severe the loss of life will be?"

"I doubt it – but the number of cities that will be affected by this must mean we're talking in the hundreds of millions. " Dr Prasad replied.

Jo looked at Lucas, then Ros and said softly, her voice unsteady, "So we're facing the end of the world as we know it."

The reply was prompt and had the clinical precision of a man who dealt in facts not hyperbole, "To say that this is a global catastrophe is an almost absurd understatement."

Ros asked hesitantly, "Do we have any idea of the potential UK death toll from this event?"

"Outside of London 4 - 6 million deaths if we can't evacuate the affected areas in time. Inside London, potentially 5 million deaths," Dr Prasad replied. Then he added, "we are currently in the process of running a computer model to simulate the effects on the UK in greater detail. We'll keep you informed of the results."

Jo turned to Ros and asked quietly - "What is the likelihood of staging a successful evacuation of London in time?".

Ros took in a breath before replying grimly. "Almost nil. I'm confident we will be able to evacuate Ministers, members of the JIC, the Royal Family and parts of the civilian population in affected areas but it will be impossible to stage a full scale evacuation in that timeframe. There's no way five million people could be evacuated in time. The transport network would become completely gridlocked."

Beside Ros, she could see Lucas nodding grimly, confirming her assessment.

She was almost afraid to ask the next question but began, the uncertainly registering in her voice, "What percentage of the affected civilian population do you think we could evacuate?"

Lucas replied this time, "Within London, I don't know – perhaps 20%, maybe as high as 30% - certainly not all five million."

"In other areas we may be able to do better as there will be multiple exit routes available and therefore less congestion – but I doubt we would be able to successfully evacuate more than 50% of the population."

"So today could see the death of up to seven million people," she replied, hastily calculating the potential devastation the tsunami would have on the country.

"Correct." Ros replied shortly, then turned her attention to the group.

"Do we have any more questions for Dr Prasad?" she asked, surveying her colleagues.

No one replied. "Thank you for your time Dr Prasad – I'm sure we'll be in touch again shortly. We'll continue our meeting in the meantime."

**

_There will be more character interaction in future chapters - this chapter is heavily plot related, and a couple of the next few may be as well._

_Scarily this whole volcano eruption triggering a mega tsunami scenario is a real possibility. Thought it would be a great basis for a fic ever since I read about it._


	2. Chapter 2

**8.32am – Day One **

"Where are we at now?" Ros demanded tensely, pacing across the grid.

"All available buses and trucks commandeered and being used to assist with the evacuation of the designated areas. Childcare facilities and schools being prioritized."

"JIC, the Royal Family and all but two Members of Parliament clear of the affected areas. "

"Underground still in operation to assist with the evacuation but scheduled to lock down at approximately 9:15am."

"Power stations in the affected areas deactivated," came the quickfire replies.

"And what do we still need to do?".

Silence. She stopped pacing and turned abruptly.

"Nothing?" she asked, finding that hard to credit.

"There's nothing further to do – just monitor the situation and let the police, the military and the emergency services continue the evacuation," Lucas replied. He omitted to add what everyone was thinking. _Nothing to do but sit here and wait for our deaths. To wait for this place to become a watery grave. _

"I see," she said slowly. "And what is our updated estimate of the number of fatalities?"

"6.5 million," Malcolm replied soberly. And then, unable to control his liking for accuracy, he added, "Give or take about 4%."

"From this point forward I'm assuming sole control of the situation," Ros said firmly. "I want the rest of you out of here and fast. There's a chopper coming to evacuate the two remaining MPs from the House of Commons in twenty minutes and I want you three on it. "

They stood staring at her for a moment. Eventually Lucas moved forward and placed a hand on her arm, "Ros," he started quietly, "I'll stay instead. You don't need to do this -"

"Yes I do," she said fiercely. "I'm the Section Leader and only one person is needed here now. It's my call."

"Go on – get out. All of you," she snapped, exasperated by their failure to move. She turned away from them and said with finality. "I'll make the necessary arrangements for you to be collected."

After a moment's hesitation they collected their things and made for the exit.

Jo paused at the door and then ran back to Ros and impulsively threw herself at her. "We won't forget you," she said softly, her voice shaky.

Lucas could see Ros soften for a moment and then she pushed her away from her.

"Take her away," she said hastily, looking at Lucas. He grabbed her firmly by the arm and pulled her towards the lifts, which Malcolm had been holding open somewhat impatiently for them.

**


	3. Chapter 3

Day One: 9:55am

Ever since their arrival at Luton airfield, Harry had been in contact with them via phone from a location near High Wycombe where the members of JIC had been moved to for their security.

Harry was maybe 40 minutes away from central London – safely out of reach of the path of destruction. And about 20 minutes away from the rest of the team.

"Any update for me?" Harry asked shortly, when he phoned for the third time that hour.

"We're not getting a lot of information coming through," replied Lucas. "Last thing of significance was that we had reports coming in about 30 minutes ago from the coast along the Bristol Channel to say that the tide had receded out as far as they could see and that fish were being stranded on the sand."

Harry breathed in. "Not good."

"How's the Prime Minister?" Lucas asked hesitantly.

"Having kittens. In multiple batches," Harry replied shortly. It sounded like an understatement. He continued, "What about the evacuation?"

"The underground was locked down just over 30 minutes ago."

"In most of the cities along the coast there's been some panic and traffic congestion as people have started to realize what's happening. Less so in the smaller towns, but we're still never going to get everyone out," Lucas added grimly. "Malcolm calculated the evacuation rate for the areas outside London would be around 45%."

"In London, as you know, things went smoothly for the first couple of hours but then after seven traffic started to pileup in a major way on the exits to the city as people woke up and heard the news. Last we heard there was still massive congestion. Our estimate is that by this time we have evacuated around 1.3 million people. 3.8 we can't get to in time - in addition to the 2.7 in the other parts of the country we can't reach."

"Jesus," Harry muttered, even though he'd heard the estimates before. "Have we had contact with the affected areas?"

"We lost contact with the cities along the south and southwest coasts just after 9.30." Lucas paused and added quietly, "And we haven't been able to get through to Ros for the past 15 minutes."

Harry was silent for a moment, then said, "The military are going to be taking this thing over as the lead agency from now on. The Prime Minister wants them to lead the recovery and coordinate the relief effort. They've got some surveillance flights going up shortly to see what the situation is. They'll be in touch as soon as they have anything to report. Our role will be to assist them as and when required."

"When will we be able to get back inside London?" Lucas asked impatiently.

"Not today anyway. Dr Pettinger has advised that there may be recurrent swells throughout the rest of today. Not as high as the first wave but still damaging. They want to shut off the affected areas. The military are going to start setting up roadblocks outside London and the other main cities affected to prevent people from returning."

Lucas put down the phone and kicked the ground in his frustration. Without access to the Grid there was little they could do to improve the situation. They only had phones and Malcolm's laptop with them. All they could do was to await instructions from the military and assist them as best they could from the outside.

Lucas turned at the sound of a small voice behind him asking, "Are we going back then?"

Jo had had a peculiarly wide eyed look about her ever since they'd heard the news that they'd lost contact with the cities along the coast.

He shook his head, "All of the affected areas have been shut down until tomorrow. They're worried about recurrent swells."

"Oh," she said quietly, sounding defeated.

"I don't like it either," Lucas replied shortly, trying to contain the unreasoning anger within him.

Her startlingly blue eyes met his for a moment and held his gaze and then he heard her say bitterly, "So we just have to sit here and wait then? – just wait while the water sweeps everyone away. It just feels so wrong, Lucas and I can't even imagine what those people must be going through right now," she said, her voice taking on a shaky edge.

"I don't know what would be worse – to know it was coming and have to sit there and wait to die or else to never have heard the news and not have a chance to say goodbye to your family."

There was an emotion in her voice that made him look at her expression more closely and he noted with shock the raw grief that was clearly visible on her still childish face.

He asked slowly, "Where does your family live, Jo?"

She was silent for a moment and then answered, "My older brother lives in Leicester, and the younger one lives in Camden. Jonny. He's my favorite. You'd like him if you met him - everyone does. My parents live in Kensington."

Camden and Kensington were in central London and were squarely inside the area that would be submerged by the tidal wave. Lucas hadn't thought of his family today, but took a moment to be grateful that his parents were safely tucked away in rural Cumbria and his brother in Birmingham, some distance from the coast.

"I tried calling my parents as soon as I heard but they had their answer phone on. I got through just before 8 and they said they were leaving but I haven't been able to get through to them since. I couldn't even get through to my brother because of the overloading and still can't. And now I think - I think I might not even have a family any more," she finished softly.

Lucas hesitated for a while, uncertain how to respond. He wasn't really given to physical contact in general and with Jo in particular it was something that he had always avoided. But this time he thought he would make an exception.

After a moment's pause, he pulled her towards him and held her tightly so that her head rested under his chin and said in a low voice, " we'll look after you, Malcolm and I."


	4. Chapter 4

Day Two 08: 12am

It was with some trepidation that Lucas, Malcolm and Jo had made their way back to the city of London that morning.

The reports from the military yesterday of the damage to the UK had been sobering in the extreme. Central London had been completely devastated as had the other cities and towns along the coast.

On the outskirts of London things had looked relatively normal but it hadn't taken them long to discover that there was no power, no water and no means of contacting the outside world as all the telecommunication towers had been destroyed.

Yesterday they had achieved virtually nothing in Lucas' opinion.

After traveling into Luton in search of an office they could use the team had entered the local Council offices only to find these without power and in a state of complete chaos. The rest of the town was the same. They had taken their car and journeyed further north, stopping at towns along the way and becoming increasingly concerned to find that they too were without power. After traveling for a little over an hour they eventually came to a village that did have electricity.

From there they had set themselves up as best they could and began to gather intelligence about what was happening and assisting their contacts at the military with the limited requests for assistance they received. Lucas knew enough about the British military to know that they liked to run their own operations – so they lack of contact didn't surprise him, though it frustrated him enormously and by the expression on Malcolm and Jo's faces they felt the same.

Something else that had been troubling him was that yesterday evening they'd lost contact with Harry. They'd tried his line three times that evening, and left two messages but hadn't heard back from him. This morning in the car as they drove into the city they'd tried again with no success.

As the moved farther into the city it was easy to identify the precise point at which the water had reached the capital. The force of the water meant that most of the buildings were now completely devastated, with only a few structures sturdier remaining.

From this point onwards it was obvious that a car wouldn't be of much use as the road had simply disappeared and been covered by a pile of debris. They were forced to abandon their vehicle and continue their journey on foot.

Amongst the ruins of houses and debris from the deluge were the bodies. He had seen Jo turn away when she encountered the first one, and Malcolm's mouth purse in silent distaste.

After a little while, as the fatalities became an increasingly familiar sight, he saw that Jo didn't turn away any more but just averted her eyes as best she could and kept picking her way through the rubble. He himself had learned to avoid looking at the cars as these had become a watery grave for many of the city's inhabitants.

Yesterday he'd asked Malcolm about his mother – and was relieved to hear that she was living in rural Dorset, and was therefore likely to be unaffected by the disaster.

Navigating the route into the centre of the city had been difficult, eventually they had found their way to the Thames and from there followed the course of the river until they reached Thames House. Remarkably, Thames House was one of the buildings that was still standing, though it was heavily damaged.

But once they reached the building they were unable to gain entry inside. The security system was electronically controlled and with no power there was no way to access the building. So, they had had to turn back the way they had come and spend a further four hours traveling on foot.

On the way back, Malcolm had entertained himself by randomly reciting verses from Shakespearean plays. After a while Jo had started chiming in to guess which play he was quoting from. It quickly turned into a little game between them. Jo's success rate wouldn't have been higher than 50% but she persevered anyway. Lucas was pleased to see her show an interest in something, given that she'd been remarkably quiet all day.

As they walked Lucas turned over the situation in his head, considering what their next move should be. By the time they would have returned to where they had left their car, he reasoned, it would be almost dark.

As there was no mobile reception, they had no way of contacting either Harry or the outside world, in Lucas's view their next move should be to make contact with one of the emergency reporting centers, in the hope that they may have information about the situation.

The day before they had learned that the military were planning to convert many of the schools outside the affected areas into civilian welfare centers and were encouraging people to report there if they were in need of assistance. The first centers had opened their doors yesterday afternoon.

Once they reached the car, Lucas announced his plan. Both Malcolm and Jo nodded their agreement to the idea. After driving around for some twenty minutes they had come across their first school. Upon entering the building they found it crowded with people rushing here and there, crying babies and general mayhem.

They located someone official looking who was wearing a fluorescent arm band marked 'Volunteer," and asked what the situation was.

"Chaos," was the brief reply. He didn't look like he was exaggerating.

"We've had about a thousand people turn up in the past two days here, and we just don't have the capacity to cope with anywhere near these numbers. The military have been moving people out but only about three hundred so far. They can't keep up with the demand."

"On top of that we don't have running water and only limited bottled supplies. We have an emergency generator here which we're been using for cooking but that's not nearly enough for this amount of people. We're ok for food for the meantime as the army have requisitioned some. But overall its chaos – pure chaos."

Lucas, Jo and Malcolm listened to his comments in silence. It was obvious from even a cursory glance around them that he was telling the truth.

"Lucas," Jo said, catching his attention, "I think we should talk to him," she finished, pointing.

Lucas looked in the direction she had pointed and saw a stocky figure dressed in a military uniform.

They walked over to greet the soldier, introduced themselves as MI5 and asked him what he knew. His reply indicated he knew very little more than what the volunteer had told him. He had virtually no knowledge of the situation affecting the wider region and could comment only on what was happening at the centre and on the frequency of military transport in and out of it.

After he'd finished speaking he saw Jo look up hesitantly and ask if they'd kept a record of all of the people coming in and out of the centre. The soldier nodded in reply, "paper records only seeing as there's no electricity."

"Could I have a look at them?" she asked quietly.

"Sure can," he replied, and took them both over to a desk manned by a rather harassed looking elderly man clutching a pile of papers.

"They want to look at the list of names," he said shortly.

Jo picked up the papers and began scanning through them intently, her attention completely focused on the list. After reading through all of the papers once and then going back and re-reading them again she put them down - disappointment clearly written on her face.

Lucas frowned, but said nothing, then turned back to the soldier, "I don't suppose there's anywhere we could sleep here?."

"No spare beds here, sorry," he said apologetically, 'We're packed. But maybe we could set you up somewhere else."

He thought for a moment, "Classrooms are full, so is the gym and the library and the teachers lounge is a makeshift hospital. You could have the supply room, if you liked, its not spacious I'm afraid but its quiet."

Lucas nodded, "That would be fine, thanks."

Once they entered the room Lucas came to the view that it was doubtful whether the supply room could really be called a room – it was really more of a closet. Without electricity they had had to borrow a torch from their car for lighting.

After lining up at the communal kitchen for some dinner - which made Lucas feel very much like he was back at boarding school once again - the three of them retired to the supply room to get some rest. The silence in the room was a welcome respite from the hustle and bustle throughout the rest of the building.

Malcolm dozed off to sleep relatively quickly, but Lucas stayed awake considering the day's events.

After a little while, he was interrupted by the sound of Jo whispering, "Lucas, are you still awake?"

"Yes," he replied quietly. It was not yet nine o'clock and despite the fact that the day had been exhausting, his body wasn't yet ready to sleep.

"What do you think we should do next?" she asked softly.

"I was thinking about that. Our options are limited really," Lucas answered.

"I want to go and visit some more reporting centres tomorrow," Jo whispered. "To see if they know any more."

It was true that she wanted to visit other centres to see if they could gain any further intelligence about the situation. It was also true that she was desperate to scan through other lists of names to see if any ending in "Portman" were amongst them.

"Fine," Lucas replied briefly. It made sense from an operational point of view to carry out further visits, but Lucas was smart enough to be able to predict that that wasn't Jo's only motivation.

"Lucas," she continued, "did they have any blankets left?"

"No – they're all gone I'm afraid," he replied quietly. "Are you cold then?"

"A little," she replied.

He wasn't surprised. The night was cold and she had on only a short sleeved blouse and skirt on. Malcolm was fortunate enough to be wearing a three piece suit and a trenchcoat and he had on a long sleeved top and jeans.

The room was dark but there was a full moon outside and light filtered through the window to illuminate the room. Lucas reached out his hand to catch her arm and pulled her over so that she lay against him with her head resting on his chest.

"This should be warmer then," he said quietly.

He couldn't read her expression but he could feel the tension that been apparent at first in her body gradually disappear as she relaxed and then seemed content to lay there quietly with his arm around her.

"Best to get some rest Jo," he said in a soft whisper a couple of minutes later, "You'll need it tomorrow."


	5. Chapter 5

Day Three

The next day had seemed to rush by in a blur to Lucas.

That morning they had agreed that Jo and Malcolm would go and visit further reporting centers in search of information while he would follow up some alternative sources of intelligence.

The discussion had ended with them agreeing that he would take the car. Just as he had been about to leave, Jo had hesitated and ran over to him, "Maybe you should walk too," she said, uncertain.

Lucas looked at her, considering her suggestion, "why?"

"I was wondering whether the tsunami would have affected our oil supply – it may be difficult to get hold of petrol in the future."

Lucas nodded after a moment," You're right – it could be. I'll see if I can fill the car up and then we'll try to conserve petrol."

Jo's prediction had proven to be uncannily accurate. Lucas tried three petrol stations that morning but all three had run out of petrol. He'd returned the car to the centre and then spent the rest of the day traveling on foot.

He tried two possible contacts, but both houses were uninhabited. He hadn't even bothered to try anyone inside the affected zone. The third contact he followed up with proved to be more successful. Jim Pichalowsky was his name. He was a long time MI6 employee, half Russian, who Lucas had worked with some years earlier, prior to his departure to Russia. Jim had contacts all over the place and if anyone was likely to know what was going on, it would be Jim.

Lucas had begun by saying that he'd spent the morning trying to refuel the car.

"Don't bother – there's no petrol," Jim replied shortly.

"The tsunami devastated a lot of the fuel supplies internationally and disrupted most of the trade routes. There is now a global fuel shortage. The countries that have oil are hanging on to it for dear life and you can't get it for love nor money. Back here once the media reported what was going on in the areas that have power there was a massive rush to the petrol stations and now only the military has supplies – and they're limited from what I've heard."

Lucas nodded. It wasn't surprising, but the lack of fuel was a serious worry. There were several million people still living in the outer edges of the city with no power or water. With fuel supplies scarce, it would become increasingly difficult to transport water and food to them, or to move them to areas where they would have access to them.

Jim continued, "there's further trouble on the horizon. All of the shops in London ran out of water yesterday – and now most of them are getting low on food. They'll need to get people out of the city and fast - without water in particular people can only survive a couple of days at most."

It was also clear to Lucas even though there were no engineers around to assess the situation that the damage to the pipe network and electricity connections from the tsunami would be extensive. The miles and miles of repairs needed would mean that the restoration of power and electricity to the city would be months rather than days away. And without power and water the city would quickly become uninhabitable.

"Do you know how the military plans on responding?" Lucas asked.

"They're moving people out into the country to where they have water but it's not quick enough in my opinion and the petrol situation could put a hold on that."

"Other than that I don't know a lot," he continued shortly. "Not having much luck getting information out of my contacts – seems like a lot of them don't even know what's going on and the others who may know more seem curiously tight lipped about what's happening."

"Jim," Lucas began," We're concerned about Harry – we've been trying to contact him for days now and having no luck. We don't know whether they've lost coverage where he is or if there is something more serious going on. We haven't heard from Ros Myers either – though she was in Thames House when it hit, so we're not sure if that's the reason why."

"I'll see if I can find anything out," Jim replied promptly. "Though I'm not making any promises."

Lucas nodded, "thanks," then added, after a pause, "I was wondering if I could ask another favour. I'm looking for some people. Anthony and Christina Portman, from Elizabeth Street in Kensington and their son, Jonny Portman. I wondered if you could see if you find out anything about where they are."

Lucas had found out the names of Jo's family after questioning her at breakfast that morning.

"I'll look into it," Jim replied, and added with a smile, "and just remember you owe me a pint once this is over."

Lucas grinned," Yeah, I'll remember."

Lucas could tell when he returned to the centre from Jo's expression that the day had not been a success.

She reported that they had spent the day traipsing around various reporting centers trying to find out information about what was going on. Nobody knew anything really except what was going on in their specific area, and they didn't know anyone who would.

He decided it would be better not to ask about her family. If the news had been good, she would have said something.

After she'd finished, Lucas said, "There's no petrol and no water."

"I know," Jo replied. "And no food now, either," Malcolm added, while Jo nodded in agreement.

Lucas frowned. He'd been expecting that was coming too based on what Jim had said but he'd hoped it might be a day or two before supplies ran out.

Jo continued, looking concerned, "Lucas did you notice how everything seems a bit uneasy now – like everyone's on edge. A lot of people have been evacuated now and the ones who're left seem a bit…desperate. It's starting to feel kind of dangerous."

"I noticed that too," Lucas replied, thinking of an encounter he'd had earlier that day with two aggressive young men who had demanded to know if he had any food on him. When he'd replied he hadn't they'd assessed him for a moment then seemed to have decided it wasn't a good idea to take him on and decided to not to take things any further. "We'll have to be more careful in the future," he added.

She nodded. "Any news about Harry?," she asked, her expression worried.

"My contact is looking into it," Lucas replied briefly.

"Good," she answered, "Let's hope he finds something."

Later that evening, after they'd had dinner and sat a while talking with the other people at the centre, the three of them retired to the supply room once more. After he'd completed an old copy of the Times Crossword by torchlight, Malcolm got up and left the room. A few minutes later he returned with a bottle of whiskey in hand, looking rather pleased with himself.

"Where did you get that?" Jo asked, surprised.

"The car," he replied. "I guess we got lucky," he said with a slight smile.

Jo sprang to her feet and announced, "I'll get some cups from the kitchen."

The three of them had sat for the next thirty minutes talking as the bottle became gradually emptier.

Lucas had noticed that Jo was knocking back her drinks with unusual speed, and was now on to her fourth glass, and she was considerably ahead of both himself and Malcolm in the drinking stakes.

And it was beginning to show. Two pink spots had appeared on her cheeks and her eyes seemed to have grown even larger than usual – if that was at all possible.

"That's enough drinking for you this evening," Lucas said firmly, removing the bottle from her grasp when she attempted to pour herself a fifth glass.

"I just wanted one more Lucas. That would be the last one," she replied innocently, giving him an imploring look. Jo wasn't even remotely the manipulative type, but he suspected she'd tried that look out before and found it to be successful. He had to admit it was quite effective.

"I don't think so," he said decisively.

"We're not on duty now," she replied. "It's not for you to order me around like a junior officer," she added, annoyed.

"Not strictly," Lucas replied coolly, "but I can tell you've had enough, and drinking any more is really not going to help improve the situation."

"It might," she replied, looking cross. "Drinking often does that for at least a little while," she added shortly.

Lucas sighed, "You're just upset that's all – its been difficult for everyone these last few days and…well more difficult for you," he said, not wishing to directly bring up the matter of her family.

"Fine," said Jo shortly, her cheeks glowing pink with the effects of the alcohol.

"What does it matter anyway whether I can have another drink? Everything that matters is gone now anyway. There's no one left. Not my parents, not my younger brother. Zaf, Adam, Connie, Ben, Ros, and maybe Harry too. My older brother's all that's left. Just him and Malcolm and you."

She continued softly, "A drink's not going to change that I suppose – I just wanted to forget about it for a little while was all but you won't even let me do that," she said, giving him a resentful glance.

By the time she was finished speaking Lucas could think of nothing to say and just sat there silently looking at her. He wondered whether it was possible for things to have been any more difficult for Jo over the past six months. First the news that her friend had been brutally tortured to death, then captured and raped herself, then having to watch as almost everyone she loved slipped out of her fingers to meet a premature death.

Although he'd asked Jim to look into what had happened to her family, he didn't want to let her know that until he had something to report. To tell her anything now could well just raise her hopes which would be unnecessarily cruel if the news wasn't good.

Lucas considered how he ought to respond to her. Her behaviour seemed so out of character - but then he supposed she was anxious and had clearly had too much to drink. It had taken him some time since his return to Russia to get used to dealing with women once more and her emotional outburst had unsettled him.

After a moment Jo turned away from them and started to clear a space to sleep. Malcolm followed her and had a quiet word with her, patting her on the arm a little awkwardly as he did so.

A few minutes later they all settled down to go to bed, although the atmosphere remained somewhat strained.

**

_Promise there is more character dialogue/ interaction coming up in later chapters but a lot of plot to be explained about what's going on...things start getting a little bit intruiging plot wise soon also. And we are now a couple of chapters in and still no explanation about what has happened to Harry or Ros. Hmm - I __wonder what the author has done with them... _

_And for some reason drunken Jo just plain appeals to me - coupled with Lucas's whole grumpy stop drinking comments - I so think she would do this given a chance, hence the eager running off to fetch the glasses. Mind you she won't be doing it again in this fic because I didn't employ her to appear in this fic as an alcoholic full time!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Day Four:**

That morning Lucas announced that he would be paying a repeat visit to his source to see if he could find out any further information.

He took an executive decision as the Senior Officer to have Malcolm and Jo stay behind at the centre for the day and help out as best they could from there. Yesterday they had visited six reporting centers but achieved nothing. They had one gun between them which he had packed with him. The unsettled atmosphere on the streets of London made him reluctant to allow them to go out into the streets unarmed.

Jo spent the morning helping in the kitchen, and then after lunch one of the volunteers had asked her to assist in the hospital. The tsunami had resulted in a number of casualties which the hospitals simply didn't have the capacity to cope with, particularly given that their workforce had reduced significantly. Serious cases were referred to the hospitals while less severe injuries were dealt with elsewhere. The centre had around twenty patients needing to be fed and cared for.

The volunteers at the centre took once look at Malcolm and decided he was best suited to read to some of the patients in the hospital.

By the time Lucas returned at 5pm, he found Malcolm cosily ensconced by the beside of an elderly lady who appeared to have some kind of injury to her foot. He was a little surprised to find that Malcolm's face had taken on a distinctly pink shade as he quoted aloud from what was clearly one of the more passionate scenes of the Mills and Boon novel he held in his hand. His reading was clearly meeting with the approval of the lady concerned as she would let out a wistful sigh every couple of verses.

A couple of beds away Jo had her sleeves rolled up and her face was flushed with the glow of a hard day's work. She appeared to be in the midst of carefully dressing a rather nasty wound on the arm of a young man, while chatting softly to him as she carried out what was clearly a painful exercise. He observed her hold his hand for a moment after she had finished her work, and speak to him encouragingly then finally withdraw her hand from his. He seemed to take some comfort from her presence and dropped her hand with some reluctance.

Lucas volunteered to spend the rest of the afternoon helping around the hospital as well and took on some of the heavier lifting work.

By 6pm Jo was exhausted. She had been on her feet all day, attending to the beck and call of first a rather short tempered fat woman who had been put in charge of the kitchen and then the patients at the centre's makeshift hospital. She was relieved to hear then that she and the others had been dismissed from their duties for the day and collapsed down to sit on the steps outside the teachers lounge once they got outside, leaning her head against Malcolm's shoulder with a tired sigh.

When Lucas joined them he smiled at them both and she saw that he was looking inordinately pleased with himself and wondered what the reason for that might be. She soon found out.

"I've been doing some digging," he began.

"Is this about Harry?" she wondered aloud.

Lucas frowned briefly. "No – not Harry, we don't know any more about his whereabouts unfortunately but good news all the same." He continued, "Your parents and your brothers names were found on the lists of the reception centers outside of London two days ago. They all got out of London."

"They got out of London," she repeated dazedly. Then she turned to Malcolm beside her and said excitedly, "They got out of London, Malcolm, did you hear that?"

Lucas saw an expression of pure delight pass over her face and she squeezed Malcolm's arm with excitement and then suddenly placed a kiss on his aged cheek, causing him to blush and pat her arm in a rather embarrassed fashion.

Then she turned to Lucas, "How did you find out then?"

"My contact," he replied briefly.

"Oh – thank you for asking. Thank you! Thank you!" she repeated, beaming at him happily.

After she had settled down a little, Lucas announced that on his journey back he had seen a house which was clearly uninhabited and had a number of fruit trees on the property and suggested that they might like to pay it a visit. Food rations were becoming limited and the fare served up at the centre had a rather depressing monotony about it.

Both Malcolm and Jo agreed that this was a good idea and, together with Lucas, walked together the mile or so to the house. Jo smiled happily to herself the entire distance and he even saw her do a little twirl when she thought no one was watching.

They found it easy to gain access to the house as it had been broken into previously. The fruit trees were located inside an elegant a courtyard, part of which was visible from the street. While it was clear that others had had the same idea as them, there was still plenty of fruit for them to choose from.

In the middle of the courtyard was a circular pool with a fountain.

Lucas looked at it for a long moment after they had finished inspecting the trees and then stepped off to the side and tugged his shirt off. "What are you doing?" Jo asked, thinking that surely he wasn't planning on stripping off right now.

"Having a bath," he replied nonchalantly, as he fiddled with his belt buckle. After three days with no water the thought of a quick dip extremely inviting.

"Oh," said Jo, flustered, "I'll leave you to it, then" she said, hastily turning to leave the courtyard to go inside the house.

"Malcolm, Jo - you're sure you don't want to join me?", he asked loudly as she left the courtyard. "Don't mind if I do," she heard Malcolm reply cheerily, "It's been days since I've been properly clean."

She almost turned round to answer his somewhat cheeky question, but quickly remembered that that probably wasn't such a good idea in the circumstances.

Inside the house, she found herself a magazine and flipped through it, but found the subject matter a little too trivial to keep her interested. Her mind wandered to what might be happening outside. The sight of Lucas half naked had had a rather odd effect on her, leaving her with a slight fluttering sensation in her tummy. And she so wished she could have a bath as they were doing right now. It was so unfair the way men could strip off like that at a moments notice but for women to do the same posed so many more problems.

She sat, tapping her fingers on the table for a while longer until an idea entered her head and she hurriedly ran up the stairs to enter the bedrooms. After rifling through the closet in the first room and having no luck she moved on to the second room. In one of drawers there she finally found what she was searching for. A two piece swimming costume in a Mediterranean blue colour. How exciting!

She quickly undressed and pulled it on and then paused to inspect herself in the mirror. The top was in a singlet style with a halter neck that tied at the back and had matching boyleg shorts. It was all perfectly respectable apart for the fact that the top was too tight and this combined with the underwiring and rather plunging neckline had the effect of making everything spill over in a way that left little to the imagination. She sighed and hoped that Lucas and Malcolm wouldn't even notice that little issue.

She moved to the bathroom to see if she could find a towel and was happy to find a pile of them under the sink. She picked up a large peach one and wrapped it firmly around her, then paused to pick up first some soap and then shampoo and conditioner. Feeling rather pleased with herself she trotted downstairs and hesitantly made her way out into the courtyard.

She was relieved to find that both Lucas and Malcolm were now out of the pool and dressed. Or at least partially dressed. Malcolm was back in his old outfit, while Lucas had has jeans on but not his top and was lazing by the fountain.

Lucas looked at her getup and the pile of assorted bits and pieces she was holding curiously and then asked, "Planning on checking in to a beauty spa, are we?"

"Possibly," she replied, "If you two have checked out that is. I wouldn't want to cramp your style."

"I'd say we have," he replied breezily.

Lucas watched with what was at first casual interest, then increasingly close attention as Jo proceeded to remove her towel and step into the pool. She had an absolutely cracking figure. Long legs, a slender waist and the kind of curves that would be extremely satisfying to get a hold of. And all this in addition to what was, he had already noticed, a very pretty face.

Jo emerged from the pool some minutes later, feeling slightly self conscious but a hundred times better than she when she had entered it, drying her still dripping hair. Once she'd wrapped the towel around her once more she paused to comment to Lucas, "you know you do have some extremely sensible ideas at times."

"He does," Malcolm nodded in agreement.

Lucas flashed them both a charming smile, thinking to himself that it had been a good idea, and had also paid off in a rather unexpected way. They should definitely do this again.

He looked at his watch, "You getting changed?" he asked shortly, looking at Jo. 'We should get back."

"Yes, just give me a moment," she requested, and ran upstairs.

Feeling slightly guilty, she once again opened up the cupboards in one of the bedrooms and looked through the contents, before selecting a fitted T shirt, skirt and cardigan and then some underwear from the somewhat expensive looking collection in the side drawer. As she put them on she thought that stealing some one else's knickers felt so awfully wrong, and more than a little cheap to her. However, the fact was that she had been wearing the same outfit for three days and, without any water to be able to wash her clothes, it was becoming increasingly unpleasant to continue to do so.

She selected another outfit and collected some more underwear, and finding a large handbag in the closet dumped them into that and went downstairs to join the others, ignoring Lucas's rather amused opening line of, "been shopping, have you?"

**

_Cannot have my characters wandering around London without a bath for three days. That's just icky. Or Jo wearing the same outfit for four days. Guess I'm a bit too practically orientated for the world of fan fiction. But this also amuses me – Lucas would so strip off like that if he felt the need – he's very no nonsense and doesn't seem like he gives a damn about social convention. And I like Jo's eerm – what are you doing reply, and also her thinking that maybe Lucas won't notice about the swimming costume – hmm, I don't think so Jo - he does get paid to notice things for a living._

_And her angsting over the knicker stealing is rather amusing – I like her but she is a bit of a Miss Morality too and really Jo, you do need to remember that you do kill people from time to time, so really I don't think that in the scheme of things this would be the thing that would send you straight to hell._


	7. Chapter 7

Day Five – 9.34am

On the fifth day after the Tsunami, Lucas once again visited his contact Jim Pichalowsky to see if he could find out anything of interest. This time Jo came with him at her request. They were both becoming increasingly concerned about Harry.

Lucas broached the subject almost as soon as he was in Jim's house.

"Any news about Harry?"

Jim shook his head, "Nothing specific – but there are rumours flying around that have me very concerned about the situation."

"What sort of rumours?" Lucas asked briefly.

"I don't have enough information to say just yet – but the information I've heard suggests that something's not right."

"In what sense?" Jo asked, her eyes widening with concern.

"Politically – people are being kept in the dark and the talk is that there are things going on behind the scenes that wouldn't bear scrutiny. With everything the way it is, power is concentrated in one or two places and there are no checks and balances in place any more. I can't say more until I have some definite information though."

"Can you tell us specifically who we should to be concerned about?" Jo asked.

Jim shook his head, "that I can't – I need to wait until I have more information and I've really said too much already."

"There's something else you ought to be aware of," he continued. "Yesterday some of the hospitals reported a sharp increase in admissions – with the patients all reporting similar symptoms. Based on the reports I heard that one of the hospitals is saying its something we haven't seen here for a long time," he said gravely.

"What's that?" Lucas asked hastily.

"Cholera. They think we might be seeing the start of a cholera epidemic."

Jo recognized the name but wasn't familiar with the illness. Cholera was something people got in places like India or Africa – not in Britain surely?

"What does this mean then?" she asked hesitantly.

"It's extremely serious. It's spread when people drink contaminated water and its one of the most dangerous infections you could come across. In the nineteenth century, outbreaks in England killed up to 50,000 people – in places like India during the course of the nineteenth century it killed over 30 million people."

"When I was working for Six in Africa it was still an ongoing problem and it strikes so rapidly it is absolutely devastating."

"How do you treat it?" Lucas asked.

"'The only effective option to prevent its spread is to provide a safe drinking water supply. Once the patient has it they require continuous rehydration with water and a course of antibiotics. Left untreated the mortality rate is around 50% and death follows about 18 hours after its been contracted. The military will need to evacuate the entire city and fast to prevent its spread."

"Do you know what their plans are?" Lucas questioned, looking concerned.

"I know they're planning to step up their evacuation efforts as much as possible – though they may be hampered by the fuel situation," Jim replied, then added gravely, "Let's just hope they can get people out quick enough because this thing can be absolutely lethal."

Jo turned to Lucas, "We should go back to the centre and see if we can help with the evacuation," she said, her expression worried.

Lucas nodded. "Yes, we'd best head back."

"Be careful when you're out there," Jim said quickly, "Things are getting really dangerous now – people are panicking about food and water supplies and the empty houses are just another temptation for the criminal classes. I'm making preparations to get my family out of here – we should be ready to leave by tomorrow. You might be wise to consider doing the same."

"We'll stay here and help with the evacuation for as long as we're needed – but thanks for the advice. And the information," Lucas replied as they headed for the door.


	8. Chapter 8

**Day Five: 10.19am**

The journey back to the centre was quiet. Too quiet actually. It wasn't until they had walked over a mile that Jo noticed they hadn't encountered anyone else about, despite the fact that this was usually a bustling shopping area. Lucas had noticed the same thing.

As they rounded a bend, she saw Lucas tense visibly and followed his line of sight to see three rough looking men loitering at the corner of a street adjoining the one they were on, about ten metres ahead of them. The men looked up at them with interest, and one of the group began moved towards them. Jo suspected from the way he was clutching at something hidden in his pocket that he was armed. Lucas reacted quickly, pulling out his gun and pointing it at him, yelling, "Stay back, we're armed."

The man looked at them for a moment, trying to decide whether he should retreat or attempt to take them on, then after a moment put his hands in the air and retreated backwards to his companions. Jo relaxed slightly and let out the breath she had been holding with a sigh of relief. "Check my back," Lucas ordered as he began to move backwards - the gun still pointed at the man. Jo turned and checked behind him. "Clear," she replied firmly and they retreated back around the corner and selected a different route back to the centre.

When they arrived there they noticed that there was an unusually high level of activity occurring. Lucas strode up to Malcolm and asked him for an update on the situation.

"They're trying to up the level of activity and get people out of the cities," he replied. "They don't have enough petrol to transport everyone and lots of people have left on foot – the lucky ones still have a little fuel to take their cars. Everyone says the city's getting too dangerous now and there are rumours about people getting sick too though nobody knows what from."

Lucas nodded, "we do. Cholera."

Malcolm looked shocked, "Cholera – Oh my! That's something I never expected to see in London. No wonder they're trying to evacuate the city."

"They're keeping you busy here?" Lucas questioned.

"Very much so," Malcolm nodded.

"Good." He turned to Jo, "Let's go and find out what needs doing."

They went in search of the soldier they had been dealing with and found him surrounded by a number of volunteers all competing for his attention. After a few minutes they managed to get a moment to speak with him.

"What do you need us to do?" Lucas asked.

The soldier thought for a moment. "You armed?"

Lucas nodded, "Yes."

"We're trying to evacuate people from their homes but a lot of its being done by civilians and its dangerous out there. They could do with an escort."

"We'd be happy to assist," Jo replied. Lucas was about to say something similar but wasn't surprised that she beat him to it. There was nothing Jo liked better than to help others and all too often in their job they had to employ dubious methods to achieve the results they desired. Today's mission, however, was exactly the kind of thing he knew she lived for.

They spent the next four hours with two volunteers as they moved from door to door checking whether people were still home and advising those who were to pack some essentials and leave the city on foot. Those who were sick or elderly were told to make sure they were ready to move out as soon as a truck arrived. Most of the houses they visited were already empty but they needed to alert those left behind to the need to get out of the city.

Standing outside one of the houses, Jo saw the figure of an elderly woman appear in the distance. She paused to look for Lucas , seeing that he was busy talking inside with the volunteers and an anxious mother with three small children, then ran across the road and down to the street to assist the old lady who was slowly making her way up the road, having obviously sustained an injury of some kind. Once she reached her, Jo offered her her arm and them enquired quietly whether she had been hurt. The lady pointed to her leg and Jo bent down to inspect her right calf. It looked painful and appeared to be strained as her movements were more like a hobble than a walk.

Jo was still crouched down assessing the leg, her back to the street when she heard the scuffle of footsteps behind her and quickly whirled around to find a gun pointed at her and a gang of four surly looking men eying up the scene in front of them with a laid back kind of interest.

"Get your hands up," shouted a dark haired young man, scowling at them.

Jo quickly put her hands in the air, and the lady beside her followed more slowly, her hands visibly shaking.

"Got any food?" another demanded.

"No," said Jo, calmly, "Nothing – you're wasting your time."

"You're fucking wasting my time is more like it. What about you then?" he yelled at the clearly petrified elderly woman, "come on – what? can't you speak then," he shouted, waving the gun at her threateningly.

"She doesn't have any food," said Jo firmly, then added quietly, "She's very elderly and she's trying to get to a reporting center so she can get some help."

"I didn't ask for her life story, bitch."

"Oy, Baz," he said, gesturing to the scruffy looking young man by his side, "search 'em - see if they have any food or weapons."

Baz completed his search while his friend watched eagle eyed, "Nothin'" he reported back finally.

Jo risked taking her eyes off the gang for a moment to check how the elderly lady beside her was doing. She was pale and trembling and her breathing was labored. She wished she could have offered her some comfort by holding her hand but she daren't risk it. She hoped their ordeal would be over soon and she would be able to get the lady to safety soon.

She turned her attention back to the group in front of her and saw the ringleader assessing her up and down with a look that terrified her.

He opened his mouth, then barked to the aggressive looking man on his right, "Leave granma here but take the girl."

A second later she was seized and dragged off down the street, without even a moment's notice to react. Even if she had had time to resist, she doubted whether that would have made a difference. She was trained and she was fast, but there were four of them and they looked both vicious and streetsmart. Before she could let out a strangled scream a hand was clamped firmly over her mouth and she felt a wave of fear take hold of her, so strong she thought she might be violently ill, as she imagined what the next few hours might hold for her.


	9. Chapter 9

When Lucas and the volunteers exited the house, it took him a moment to register that there was no sign of Jo. He tried calling her but it proved fruitless. Seeing an elderly woman down the road he crossed over and ran towards her.

"Excuse me – I'm looking for a girl – blonde, pretty, quite young – have you seen her?" he asked.

The lady nodded, a worried look on her face. "Sounds like the girl that was here helping me before - I'm afraid she's in trouble."

"What do you mean?" Lucas demanded.

"Well she was here with me before, and was going to help me get to the center and was just checking my leg for me, I injured it coming down the stairs you see, and because of my hip the doctor says I should only walk short distances at a time but what with there being no power or water and all -"

"Yes," said Lucas, trying to restrain himself from snapping, "I see. So what happened to the girl then?'"

"Well it was all quite terrifying - these awful young men came up behind us and pointed a gun at us," she shuddered. "There were four of them and they wanted us to give them food, but we didn't have any, and then they searched us, and then I thought they'd leave us alone, but then they grabbed your friend and dragged her away with them, and I – well I don't like to think what they might do to her. They were just such dreadful, dreadful men, and your friend was such a pretty girl. And the language they used was just shocking and my mother always used to say that you can judge a person's character by what -"

Lucas interrupted, "Which way did they go?" he asked urgently.

"That way," she indicated, pointing her finger in the direction they had gone in some five minutes earlier, "I see you have a gun, but do be careful won't you,,," she paused as Lucas ran off into the distance, then trailed off to herself, "they looked so very dangerous."

**

As he rounded yet another bend and could see no one in sight, Lucas swore violently. He'd been looking for twenty minutes already and he had no leads. He'd asked every person he'd came across if they had seen a blond girl with a group of men, but he'd only seen two people so far, and both of them hadn't been able to help. He'd searched for clues – any sign of a struggle, items on the ground, but there was nothing. There was no one around and every street he came to led off to multiple alleyways and lanes. Without CCTV, trackers or even eyewitnesses he was working blind. The chances of finding her were slim, and of finding her in time to prevent any harm coming to her worse still.

He didn't care to think what might happen if he got to her too late. With her history he didn't think Jo would be able to survive another ordeal like that. He knew that after the Redbacks had taken her last time she had asked Adam to kill her.

There was a good chance the gang would keep her alive rather than kill her, given what they wanted her for. He hoped he could find her soon. If he was too late he thought it likely she would rapidly set herself on a course towards self-destruction and he would have to watch her day and night like a hawk to try to prevent that from happening.


	10. Chapter 10

Once she had been taken Jo had found herself being hustled away at high speed by the gang. She knew that her only chance of escape was to _think_ and watch for her opportunity, and to be smart. Not to let on that she was anything other than an ordinary girl. The element of surprise would be her best defense. And she knew she had to escape – the discussion between the ringleader and his friend had left her in no doubt of their plans for her. Thankfully the other two hadn't taken much interest in her. She tried to steel herself to ignore them - not to let their words fuel her nightmares once more.

After about ten minutes they came to the edge of the other part of London where the water had swept aside everything in its path. The gang lead her on a detour, weaving in and out of the path of destruction. It was now a chilling watery graveyard – with no one in sight except for bodies – stinking and bloated with staring eyes. This part of London was now the city of the dead. On the other side was the lawless city of the living where guns ruled the streets. She didn't know which was worse.

After a little while they emerged from that part of the city. Jo knew that she needed to separate herself and the thug who was holding her from the rest of the group. Four to one she had no chance, one on one the odds were considerably better. As they walked up a step along an alleyway she pretended to trip on the step. She stumbled to the ground and clutched her foot in mock pain, letting out a quiet moan, not too loud so as not to alert the others in front of her. She watched as the distance between them and the other widened from a few metres to more than a dozen, then when she could see her captor was about to raise his voice to shout to his friends, she leapt to her feet and made her move, hooking her leg behind the knees of her captor and pushing him backwards at the same time so as to remove his footing and make him fall backwards.

Once she'd dealt with him she seized the opportunity and ran for her life. It took the gang only a few seconds to realize she was gone and then they were after her. She had the advantage of being a little ahead of them but when she glanced behind her she could still see them behind her. She continued to run as she had never run before, the fear inside her powering her legs. The next time she glanced behind she saw that two of them had given up the chase, but the other two continued their pursuit – and they were also fast. Though she only turned round for a second she was alarmed to see that they might actually be gaining on her.

**

Despite his increasing anxiety that his search would be fruitless, Lucas continued to hunt for Jo. After a further ten minutes he had a lucky break when he glimpsed a blur of blonde followed by two dark figures down a side street. "Jo?" he shouted.

"Lucas!" came the desperate cry in return.

He turned quickly and to ran towards the voice. When he emerged into the next street over he saw Jo some metres ahead of him being pursued by two scruffy looking thugs. "Stop where you are and put your hands up," he yelled.

He saw the two men turn around and pause. They looked visibly shocked at the sight of him with him with his gun pointed directly at them. It took Lucas only a moment to decide what to do. The normal course of action would have been to apprehend the two individuals and hand them over to the Police. But these were not normal times. In this world there was no authority, no one to enforce the law and thugs like these could flourish – preying off the weak and vulnerable. If he let them go how many more victims would they find in the city? Elderly ladies, young girls and anyone else who was unarmed would all be fair game to them.

He took aim and fired three shots. His accuracy was, as usual, excellent. When he lifted his eyes he could see Jo standing in the distance – pale and silent - watching him with a slightly shocked expression on her face. He paused to inspect the bodies on the ground then ran towards her.

"Jo – you okay?"

She nodded slightly, a dazed expression on her face.

He looked at her more closely, "Did they rape you?."

She shook her head, "No – I'm fine." She knew from experience Lucas had never been one to mince words.

"Good," he said brusquely.

He was relieved to hear that. For some reason the thought of losing Jo or her being hurt had worried him far more than he thought it would. She was his colleague, his junior and so of course he had a duty to look out for her, to protect her – but he knew he could survive on his own. He didn't need her. So why should he be so alarmed at the thought of losing her. And why after he had fired the trigger of his gun and seen the two men fall to the ground did his actions give him a feeling of immense satisfaction? He had shot people before when the need arose but he had never relished it.

He turned to Jo and said harshly, "You shouldn't have run away like that, you know. I told you it was dangerous on the streets and that you were to wait outside for us and instead of taking my advice you went flitting off down the road. You need to remember that I'm the senior officer and you follow my instructions. Are we clear?"

Jo listened to his comments in silence, saying nothing and then nodded. After a moment she raised her voice and said hesitantly, "Lucas, we should see if the lady's all right."

"The lady?" Lucas repeated, not sure who she was referring to.

"The lady I was helping today, before - before everything else happened. She had injured her leg and she was trying to get to a center."

Lucas looked at her for a moment and wondered how someone as altruistic as her had managed to get recruited by MI5. He sighed, "The volunteers were nearly finished and will have gone home by now. We need to get back to the centre and we can't afford to be detouring all over the place looking for that woman. You can't win every battle you know Jo. Sometimes you have to stop thinking of others and just concentrate on taking care of yourself."

"But we should try," she said firmly, "Don't you think we should try? And besides you've spent all day helping people too. Why is it ok for you to do that and not for me?"

"That was different." Lucas replied, as if it was obvious why.

"I'm a trained MI5 officer same as you," she persisted. "Anyway, I think we should go and see if she's alright. I want to go."

Lucas looked at her for a moment, taking in her long lashed baby blue eyes, her golden hair which was now fashioned into a short bob, porcelain complexion and pretty pout. Jo was beautiful, almost painfully so, but she didn't know it. That was half the problem with her.

"I'm sure she's fine," Lucas said shortly, annoyed at the way she was persisting in thinking she should stay out and about on the streets helping others at night. He was going to have to spell it out for her.

"It's getting dark now and I'm not sure you appreciate how dangerous it will get out here," he said. "We really need to get back to the centre. I'm sure the lady will have found her way by now, besides which elderly ladies have nothing of value to the low life scum who roam the streets. You on the other hand do, which is why you can't go wandering the streets at night. The fact is that the way you look men are going to want you and that's a dangerous thing in this world. And I'm not even sure if I can protect you from that out here," he finished sharply.

He continued abruptly, "I've told you this before but you don't seem to understand that all of the old rules have gone. There's no law anymore – its just chaos. People can do whatever they want and there's no one to stop them and no consequences, they can take whatever they want – food, weapons, shelter, you name it. Yes you're MI5 but you're also just a girl and you're no match for the gangs out there. I know you like to believe the best of people but you really need to stop being so naïve and get to grips with the world we're living in now."

She looked for a moment like she was going to protest, but appeared to change her mind and instead clamped her mouth shut firmly, and turned away from him.

Jo didn't say anything because there was nothing she could think of to say in light of the conflicting mixture of humiliation and annoyance that Lucas had made her feel. The fact was that she had to be grateful to him for helping her out of a difficult situation today, and that her 'wandering off' as he called it had been the origin of her problem but she was also seething at how unfair he was being. She had only left his side for five minutes and had stayed within a couple of hundred metres. It was unfair to say that she was naïve and did he really expect her to stay glued to him like a weight around his ankles every minute of the day? She didn't think she could stand that.

After the dramas of the day, their journey back to the centre proved uneventful. However, unlike their earlier trips it was made in complete silence and a rather uncomfortable one at that.

**

_Next chapter we find out more about Harry when further information is revealed...stay tuned!_

_Also - if you're enjoying the story please review and let me know. Thanks. _


	11. Chapter 11

_This chapter - The Plot Thickens ....._

The rest of the evening passed quietly enough. Lucas noticed Jo was unusually quiet. He and Malcolm had entertained themselves playing chess. Despite the fact that Lucas was an excellent chess player he found he wasn't performing at his best and was in fact, having trouble concentrating.

The events of the day had shaken Jo more than she cared to admit. Neither one of them had said anything to Malcolm about her abduction, and consequently when Malcolm casually tapped her on the shoulder and asked her if she'd like to take him on for a round of chess, he was surprised to see her flinch visibly. She saw that Lucas had noticed her actions and afterwards that had only added to her feeling of foolishness at overreacting to something so harmless.

The next morning Lucas ordered Malcolm and Jo to stay at the centre while he went to visit Jim once more. The volunteers at the centre had found out that morning that today would be the last day that the military would be operating trucks as their petrol supplies were now nearly exhausted. After today people would have to either walk out or else remain in their homes and wait to see what their fate would be.

Lucas found Jim's house in a flurry of activity and his wife and daughters arguing loudly over what were deemed to be 'essentials.' Every now and then Jim would intervene and remind them that they could only take what they could carry which would cause his teenager daughters to respond with a mix of sulky resentment or anxious pleading, depending on who was doing the talking. Lucas watched the scene for minute or two without comment, bemused by the whole situation.

"Sorry to trouble you, I won't stay long," Lucas began. "I just wanted find out if there's any news about Harry? We're really concerned about him and Ros too. Our only guess at the moment is that he may have contracted cholera or else be stuck somewhere he can't make contact with us."

Jim took his arm and led him into the kitchen where they could be alone. "My intelligence suggests something entirely different," he said quietly, his face troubled.

"Go on," Lucas urged, desperate to find out what the situation was.

"Have you noticed the level of control the military is exercising – the control of supplies, commandeering of vehicles and equipment, the shift in the balance of power? "

"They're coordinating the emergency response." Lucas replied, uncertain where this conversation was going.

"They are – that's official. The PM designated the Chief of Staff as the lead on this situation. They're the only ones with the level of manpower, equipment and training needed to cope with this situation. The Cabinet has granted them special emergency powers."

Lucas nodded. "And we have been instructed to assist them as best we can."

"Unofficially – the actions of the army are causing concern in a number of quarters. In particular General Alexander Roberts, the Chief of Staff's right hand man. Actually he runs the army and has done for a number of years. Roberts is the one who knows the workings of the military and it is he who has the support of the troops."

Lucas nodded warily.

Jim continued, "Just yesterday I had word that all of the tv stations went off air. The military said that the tsunami has affected the transmission signal on a national basis, but that's a blantant lie. In other parts of the country it was working just fine until now. And people have caught disaster fever in a big way. They'll buy anything the officials throw at them right now. Its possible the papers could be next. In addition to this we are highly suspicious about what's been happening to the relief effort funds."

"The relief funds?" Lucas repeated, not sure what he was referring to.

"Didn't you know?" he sounded surprised. "Right now, schoolchildren in Machester are running tsunami collections, little old ladies all over the country are hosting cake stalls. The whole countries gone into a massive fundraising drive to raise money for the tsunami victims. One of the papers reported yesterday they estimated that over forty million pounds had been raised."

"They staged a number of publicity stunts at various centers to explain how the money's being used but we have evidence that a lot of the money isn't ending up where it ought to. And pretty soon it will start to tell."

"So," Lucas began cautiously, shocked at what he was hearing, "Roberts has been siphoning it off?"

Jim looked grave, "that's a distinct possibility and right now I don't have any other alternative explanations."

Jim continued, "With the petrol situation the way it is it will become increasingly difficult to get food to where it ought to be. I'd give it a couple of days before things start getting really serious – but I've visited enough third world countries to be able to predict what's on the horizon and it ain't pretty. Food shortages lead to famine which leads to violence and civil unrest. My fear is that this country will descend into anarchy within a week or two. My advice is to get out of cities and into the country. In the countryside there are still sources of food - cows and sheep and gardens to keep people going for a little longer. Only problem is I think a lot of people have the same idea. "

"Where are you getting this information?" Lucas asked.

"Sources," Jim replied warily. "But reliable ones. Worst of all a number of high ranking officials who make up the JIC have also disappeared. Harry Pearce included. Ros Myers' disappearance is also suspicious. I found out earlier today that the Chief of Staff is now one of those who are missing and that in his absence Roberts has assumed his delegated powers. We are now deeply concerned for the Prime Minister," he finished.

"You're suggesting that Roberts is orchestrating a coup," Lucas asked, the gravity of the situation beginning to weigh on him.

"What I'm suggesting," he replied, careful to stick to the facts, "is that we have a situation where one man has been granted unprecedented powers to run this country and that, one by one, all of the people in positions of power who may have been in a position to check that authority have quietly and inexplicably been vanishing off the face of the earth. You draw your own conclusions."

"The Prime Minister - " Lucas began.

"Six has, of course, instituted heightened security measures, but he still insists on making public appearances. You will appreciate that our ability to protect him from every threat is limited – a military sniper can operated from several hundred metres away and is difficult to detect, especially without the assistance of CCTV. And with the media blackout now operating its quite possible that Roberts could assassinate him and the rest of the country would never find out what had happened."

"Can we get to Roberts?" Lucas asked," Take him out?"

"We're trying – but its proving difficult. He surrounds himself with other military men – ones he trusts. It provides him with a formidable of set of bodyguards."

"Can we help?" Lucas asked

"There's really nothing more you can do," he replied. "We'll keep trying to get to Roberts by different methods. You worry about looking after yourself. Surviving now is a difficult enough business and we'll need all hands on deck to regain control of this country if we do take him out."

Jim continued, fixing Lucas with a stare, "and a word of warning – a heightened level of vigilance would be appropriate. After Ros you're the next most senior member of Section D and we just don't know how far Roberts is willing to go to take out any potential opposition. In my view you would be best to head for the hills – as the saying goes – and lie low for now. Do you still have your phone with you?"

Lucas nodded," yes, but there's no transmission here."

Jim nodded, 'I know. But there may be outside the city. You can't use it anyway. But keep it with you in case we need to make contact in the future. If I do get in touch it'll be by way of a short call. Less than 10 seconds. Untraceable."

Lucas nodded. "I'll keep it with me."

"That's all the information I have for you," Jim finished.

Lucas shook his hand, "thank you for your help," then paused and placed his other hand over Jim's for a moment and added, "and good luck."

Jim nodded soberly, "Good luck to you too."


	12. Chapter 12

**Day Six: 1:29pm**

When Lucas returned to the centre he immediately sought out Malcolm and Jo. Malcolm he found pouring over a list of names - counting through them and assigning people a number to designate them to a particular transport run. He greeted Lucas distractedly but pleasantly enough. When Lucas informed him that he should pack immediately and be ready to leave the city he merely looked at him for a moment, then nodded slowly.

Jo he found once again at the hospital. There were a number of other volunteers helping there but it was easy to pick her out. The rest of the volunteers were scuttling about anxiously, and all looked harassed and exhausted. And – well frankly - dirty. But to look at Jo it was as if she didn't even inhabit the same planet as them. She had a kind of calm serenity about her and was as beautiful as ever. Amongst all of the hustle and bustle and the panic Jo was still Jo. Even though he knew they needed to leave quickly he couldn't resist standing in the doorway for a minute or two just so he could watch her as she talked with one of the patients. There was something incredibly soothing about being able to relax for a brief moment and to be able to amuse himself with nothing other than trying to predict what the next expression to flit across her pretty face might be. Lucas had noticed almost immediately when he returned from Russia that Jo was completely different to Ros in that regard. With Ros you could never relax, never let down your guard. Ros was hard, unforgiving. Jo was exactly the opposite.

After a moment she looked up to see his tall figure looming in the doorway. He strode over to her. "We need to prepare to leave. Quickly," he said decisively.

She looked at him for a moment then said slowly, "Why the hurry?"

Lucas glanced around the room then said quietly, "We can talk later – now we need to go. The last trucks are leaving in half an hour and we need to be on them." Taking the car wasn't an option. From the look of the fuel gauge they would only make it perhaps fifteen miles before running out of petrol.

Jo looked reluctant. "But what about the rest of the patients? They've moved most of them out but some of them are too sick to move – what will happen to them?"

Lucas looked at faces of the thirty or so patients scattered around the makeshift hospital. "We'd best talk about this outside," he said, bending down slightly to speak softly into her ear, then grabbed her arm and hustled her towards the door.

"Lucas?" Jo started once they were outside the room, "What about the patients? What are our plans for them?" she asked anxiously.

"We don't have any," Lucas said shortly. "Some of the volunteers have offered to stay with them. It's very noble of them but I'm not sure its entirely sensible. We need to brief them on the dangers they're likely to face. Aside from the situation with food and water it's likely the centre will be attacked by some of the people left behind in their search of supplies. They need to understand what they're signing up for."

"But Lucas – the military dispensed the last of their water supplies today and there's only a little food left. They'll die. All of them," she said, her voice hitching in her throat as images of the faces she had so recently comforted flickered through her mind.

Lucas sighed. He hated to abandon the people as much as Jo did. But he wouldn't allow Jo let her emotions get the better of her – what she needed now was some firm direction. His sympathy would only fuel her emotional reaction and right now they needed cool level headed reason to guide their actions - not feelings.

"That's the way it has to be, I'm afraid Jo," he said sharply. "And it's no use discussing it any more. We simply can't get those people out. I'd advise you not to dwell on it. And right now we need to pack. Quickly. So follow me."

They headed back to the supply room and quickly gathered their things. Lucas paused to speak briefly to the twelve individuals who had volunteered to stay behind and found that by the end of his talk only five remained. As he did so Jo did a quick tour of the building and attempted to secure it from outside intruders as best she could, but she knew it would still be vulnerable.

Five minutes later Lucas, Malcolm and Jo found themselves squished amongst a group of dirty, smelly Londoners as the settled down for a rather uncomfortable and bumpy journey. The mood amongst the group was surprisingly cheerful, with people laughing and telling jokes, despite the horrors they had so recently experienced. After they'd been in the truck for around fifty minutes, they halted for a minute or two as some sheep blocked the road. Jo turned to see Lucas signal wordlessly towards the door to both Malcolm and herself and after a slight hesitation they made for the door and jumped out of the stationary vehicle and onto the road. The truck quickly accelerated and drove off into the distance and the three of them were left standing in the middle of what was a very quiet, but very pretty country lane.


	13. Chapter 13

They had walked northwards along the lane, over gentle rolling hills and past lush green meadows for some two hours when Malcolm pointed out the turrets of a grey stone castle peeping out from behind some trees in the distance.

"That castle," he began, "was built by Edward the Third in 1356. It was one a series of Royal Residences he constructed during the course of his reign and has some very progressive features for its time. For example – the masonry used for the walls was of an unusual material which proved to be particularly durable which explains why it is still standing today and was so resilient that it was later adopted as the building material of choice right up until the seventeenth century. The castle was also unusual in that it relied on a double moat system. Most similar structures have only one moat surrounding the castle but in this case the castle has one outer moat and then a fortified wall and then an inner moat with a further fortified wall to protect the buildings inside – and naturally it also has two drawbridges."

"Of course nowdays, the property is no longer owned by the Royal Family but by National Trust. It's a rather remarkable place actually and has been beautifully restored. You can visit it as a tourist attraction. The gardens are spectacular and it has a beautiful pond inside with trout swimming in it." He paused, "though of course I don't imagine it's open for business at the moment."

Jo listened absently to Malcolm's ramblings, still preoccupied with the fate of the patients they had left inside at the hospital. She failed to notice the spark of interest alight on Lucas's face as he considered Malcolm's words.

"So Malcolm," Lucas started, "tell me more about the castle. Is there a vegetable garden, orchards perhaps?"

Malcolm considered this for a moment then replied, "Fruit trees yes – a vegetable garden I have to say I don't rightly recall."

Jo looked from Malcolm to Lucas, startled out of her thoughts as she began to comprehend where Lucas's line of questioning was heading. She turned to Lucas, "You're thinking we could stay there Lucas?" she asked.

Lucas nodded, "it's a possibility. It would certainly be a secure location if there's no one else living there. And I rather imagine that most of the tourist trade will have dried up at the moment."

"Do you think we could get in?" Jo asked hesitantly.

"Well," Lucas replied nonchalantly, "I'm pretty good at climbing walls. If I could get in I could let you two in through the drawbridges."

"When I visited," Malcolm added, beginning to look excited, "they had some game birds there as well – pheasants and chickens and geese. They would make a tasty meal. And a well too," he added.

"I think," Lucas said decisively, "we should pay it a visit."

**

It took them a little over an hour to make their way towards the castle. They were lucky to see only two farmers during their journey who looked at them a little curiously but didn't question them. Lucas had taken a detour along the way as they passed an uninhabited farmhouse to go inside and had emerged some ten minutes later with a length of rope and a large carving knife.

When they reached the exterior of the castle they paused for a moment to survey the view. It was a truly magnificent sight. From their position they could only see the outer moat and then a second wall beyond it. Further back a series of turrets peaked out from behind the stone walls. To Jo this was so clearly the setting to every fairytale she had ever read. "It's beautiful," she breathed.

Lucas nodded. "It certainly is."

"Fourteenth century engineering at its best," Malcolm added reverently.

They observed that the drawbridge was closed and there was no evidence of visitors around the building which was a promising sign.

Lucas wasted no further time in stripping off to only his boxer shorts and tying the length of rope around his waist. Once he had secured it he dived into the moat and began to swim towards the castle. Jo had had reservations about how simple it would be to access the castle but with the help of the rope she saw that Lucas was able to scale the first wall in only a few minutes. Once he'd reached the top he disappeared from view. She collected his clothes and moved over to sit with Malcolm beside the drawbridge, settling down to wait for Lucas to let them inside.

Within half an hour they heard the creak of the castle gates as the outer drawbridge was gradually lowered down to provide entry into the buildings inside via the second lowered drawbridge. A minute after that Lucas appeared by their sides, panting. "That was heavy work," he muttered, in between breaths.

"Excellent work," Malcolm replied, patting him on the back. Jo found the sight of a hot and sweaty Lucas wearing so little to be somewhat distracting and busied herself collecting his clothes off the ground. "Here you are then," she said quietly, willing herself not to blush as she passed over his clothes. He nodded his thanks.

On their way in they paused to pull first the first, then the second drawbridge up once more using the pulleys beside the gate. Once inside the threshold to the castle they paused to survey the breathtaking buildings and gardens inside.

"If I had a glass I think I would make a toast to our new home," Malcolm said quietly. Lucas considered this for a moment then replied, "Yes, here's to our new home."

**

_It's about this point that it's easy to identify my romantic fantasies kicking in. Lucas. In a Medieval Castle tucked away from the rest of the world. Sigh. _


	14. Chapter 14

**Day 7 - 11:49am **

On their second day at the castle Malcolm and Jo could be found happily ensconced in the castle kitchen, picking through the cupboards to see what supplies were available. They had discovered to their delight that the castle was in fact home to a little café which had served its visitors and proved to have an extremely well stocked pantry.

At that precise moment Malcolm had located some cashew nuts which he was taste testing for 'quality control purposes' as he informed Jo.

"Ooooh, look at this Malcolm," Jo exclaimed excitedly, holding up a packet of chocolate buttons. "Chocolate," she sighed happily, holding it to her chest. "I was starting to wonder if I'd ever see it again. I'm pretty sure I remember there were some strawberries in the garden and I could make some chocolate dipping and we could have that for dessert tonight. Ooooh, that would be nice."

Malcolm smiled his approval and agreed that that was an excellent idea, then announced that he was going to step outside for a moment to get a breath of fresh air.

It was such a relief to be able to enjoy the simple domestic comforts that the castle provided. While it didn't have electricity, it did have a well, and provided a spacious and safe home for the three of them. One of the first things Jo had done when they arrived was to use the buckets beside the well to fill one of the baths and have a proper wash. Lucas and Malcolm had later done the same thing.

The castle was extremely well designed to operate without electricity. It had candles, a number of massive fireplaces and, as well as the commercial kitchen that was part of the café, it also had an ancient kitchen with stoves that didn't require electricity and was well stocked with pots, pans and kettles.

All three of them had spent the morning exploring the castle – but it was huge and they hadn't yet visited every room. Lucas was now busying himself collecting old bits of wood from around the grounds and rooms to stoke the fire at night.

Jo occupied herself by delving deeper into the depths of the pantry. After a little while she began to wonder why Malcolm was taking so long and wandered outside to check up on him. To her shock she found him lying on the ground in a rather odd position - his face a ghastly white colour. She shook him, "Malcolm, Malcolm! What's the matter with you?"

"Don't know," he replied slowly, his speech slurred, "Feel funny. Can't feel my arm."

Jo noticed that only one side of his mouth moved when he spoke – the other corner remained immobilized. She checked him over and was relieved to find that his breathing and heart rate seemed normal. "Can you get up?" she questioned.

Malcolm looked at her for a moment and made an attempt to get up. He propped himself up with one arm but found the rest of his body wouldn't follow his instructions. "Can't," he replied.

Jo looked at him, increasingly concerned. "Just stay there, Malcolm, " she said patting his arm comfortingly, "don't try and get up. I'll see if I can find Lucas."

Jo got up and began to run towards the other side of the castle, calling Lucas's name as she did so. He appeared in the distance a minute or so later and moved swiftly towards them. "Lucas!" Jo exclaimed. "Something's happened to Malcolm. He's not well."

Lucas had been able to guess something was wrong almost immediately from the distress on her face. "What's the matter?" he questioned briefly.

She looked up at him, her eyes wide with shock, "I don't know exactly. Maybe a stroke – he says he can't feel his arm and when he talks only one side of his mouth is moving. What do you think?" she asked anxiously.

Lucas took in a breath and looked at her for a moment then nodded, "Could be. Let me have a look at him."

Lucas checked Malcolm over carefully while Jo fidgeted nervously in the background, waiting for his verdict. After he'd finished looking at Malcolm he drew Jo aside and said quietly. 'I think you might be right – a stroke's about the only thing I can think of that would fit his symptoms. I'm not sure there's a lot we can do – he really needs to see a Doctor who can tell us what's going on."

Jo stared at him silently. She could have replied that they didn't have a Doctor, but then, of course Lucas already knew that, so it would be a pointless observation.

"I think I should make a trip into the nearest village to see if I can find a Doctor," Lucas said decisively.

"Do you think that's wise?" Jo asked, concerned. Lucas had reported his last conversation with Jim to Malcolm and Jo after they had jumped out of the truck so she was conscious of the need for them to assume a low profile.

Lucas shrugged, "Malcolm needs a Doctor. I want to see if I can find him one. That's all there is to it really."

That clearly wasn't true, Jo thought, but she knew from experience that she wouldn't get anywhere arguing with Lucas when he had that determined look in his face.

She nodded, "ok – I'll stay and mind Malcolm." After observing her at the hospital Lucas knew that she would take excellent care of Malcolm.

"You will be careful won't you?" she asked hesitantly.

"Of course," Lucas replied shortly, flashing her a brief grin. "I'm always careful."

Jo nodded, "I'll keep checking for you to let you inside again. The view from the castle walls is pretty impressive."

Lucas returned inside the castle to collect a few things to take with him on the journey and then paused for a few minutes on the way out to show Jo how to operate the mechanism for lowering and raising the drawbridge before venturing out into the wider world in search of a Doctor.


	15. Chapter 15

Jo had spent the rest of the day taking care of Malcolm. He was only able to move one side of his body. She had managed to help him inside to lie on one of the beds, but not without some difficulty. Once inside she had asked him if he was in pain or if he needed anything.

"No," was the reply. She got him a glass of water anyway, put a blanket over him and sat by his side. After he had relaxed a little she decided she needed to find out more about his health.

"Were you quite well before today Malcolm?," Jo asked gently.

He replied slowly, "I was on medication for my blood pressure – but I ran out a couple of days ago."

"Oh Malcolm," Jo exclaimed regretfully, "why didn't you tell us? We could have tried to find you some more pills."

"I doubt you'd have found any," he lisped oddly.

Jo knew that hospitals were known to be running out of supplies and medication.

He added, "and - well I didn't want to worry you both." He gave her a slightly sheepish, lopsided smile that nearly succeeded in breaking her heart.

Jo clasped his good hand firmly in hers and said quietly, "we'll look after you Malcolm – Lucas and I. You don't need to worry about anything. Why don't you just lie back and have a sleep now. I expect Lucas will be a little while."

**

Jo kept watch for Lucas to return by climbing the stairs up to one of the castle's turrets every half an hour or so. From there she had a view of the surrounding countryside. In between doing that she managed to find time to keep Malcolm comfortable and prepare both lunch and dinner for them. By 8pm when Lucas still hadn't returned she was beginning to get a little anxious.

When she had climbed the stairs to reach the highest point in the castle for what was she calculated the nineteenth time she was relieved to finally see a light outside the castle gates. She hurried down the stairs towards the drawbridge. The mechanism was heavy and she imagined that it would usually require more than one person to use it. After struggling with it for a couple of minutes she eventually managed to push it down and get the first gate to open. After a further struggle the second drawbridge gradually lowered and she ran towards the light.

But she could detect only one figure. "Lucas?"

"I'm here," he replied, catching her hand as she peered up at him, trying to make out his expression.

"I couldn't find a Doctor I'm afraid. The one in the village had left town. I went to next place over but there wasn't one living there either. I did manage to find a nurse though. She wouldn't come but she thought it was most likely a stroke but says there's very little that can be done for him. We can try moving his limbs but he's unlikely to regain movement."

"Oh," Jo replied, the disappointment audible in her voice.

"Well – we'll just have to make sure we take good care of him," she said sounding determined.

"Yes we will," Lucas replied shortly. "How is he by the way?"

"He still can't move his right arm or his leg. But he's not in pain thank goodness. He's sleeping now."

Lucas nodded. "Anyway you'll be pleased to know that I found a few goodies while I was out."

"Did you?" Jo asked, intrigued. "What kind of goodies?"

"You'll have to wait until we're inside to find out," Lucas replied.

"Oh, I think we should walk quickly then."

Even by torchlight, she could see the corners of his mouth turn up in amusement. "Fine," he replied. "Just let me shut the gates then."

"You did well to manage the lever," he commented as he worked the mechanism, "It's heavy."

Jo nodded, "It is."

Once they got inside into the main hall, Lucas pulled off his satchel and began, "so while I was at the village I visited the pharmacy. I thought I might find something useful. Unfortunately the owners weren't about and it had been broken into. All of the medication and nearly everything else had gone but I managed to collect a few things."

"So, show me what you got, then," Jo said impatiently. One a couple of weeks ago she wouldn't have batted an eyelash at the thought of trip to the chemist but at the moment it felt like Christmas.

First he produced a tiny gas canister. "This I didn't get from the chemist but I noticed some of appliances round here could work on gas so I thought it would be useful."

Jo clapped her hands in excitement, "That was good thinking – I'm sure it will be." She wondered how on earth he had managed to acquire something as useful as that in times like these.

She watched as Lucas whisked a packet of aspirin from his bag and some vitamins, then some wound dressing strips, then next some lipstick and eyeliner, which caused her to go 'aah,' in appreciation as if he had conjured a rabbit out a hat. She actually had both in her handbag which had stayed with her ever since they had left the grid and had been applying them every morning, but she was firmly of the opinion that you could never have too much of either and who knew when she would get the opportunity to buy some more?

He handed the makeup over to her with the teasing comment that even if society was collapsing, he knew she would still want to look her best. She picked up the lipstick and pulled it apart, commenting "ooh, I like the colour," then tried it on. It looked good on her, but then, of course, everything did.

Then he finally extracted a box of tampons and some tissues. She wasn't quite sure what to say about the last items so elected to make no comment but she suspected her cheeks were now turning a shade of pink similar to her new lipstick. She had to admit though that Lucas was nothing if not practical.

"I made you some dinner," she said after a moment, remembering that she had left his plate in the kitchen. "Wait there - I'll get it for you," she said, jumping up to go and get it.

Lucas got up and put a hand on her arm gently, stopping her in her tracks, "thank you – but it's fine I can get it myself," he replied, looking amused.

_**_

_These two would be so much better than some of the other possibilities. __What were you thinking Kudos??? Cos I don't find that very credible. 8.4 - no!!! _

_Anyway - tune in to upcoming installments to find out....will there be more __gratuitous scenes in which Lucas takes off his shirt for increasingly superfluous plot lines? Will Jo persuade Lucas to try on the Medieval Knights costume hanging in the castle hall? Will the crisis in the outside world ever resolve? Will Jo and Lucas find true love? _


	16. Chapter 16

Lucas enjoyed his dinner very much. Once again Jo had proved herself to an excellent chef and very resourceful in the kitchen. After dinner he went to check up on Malcolm who was still sleeping peacefully. Aside from looking a little paler than normal, he looked no different to usual.

He returned to sit by the fire in the main hall. Jo looked up and waited for him to settle, then asked him what it had been like outside.

"On the whole not too bad," he replied. "There's definitely some unsavory types wandering around but its nowhere near as bad as the cities. There's still a few provisions around but they're getting pretty scarce."

Jo nodded and fell silent, returning her attention to the novel she had found in one of the rooms.

As the night wore on even with the fire on, the room became increasingly cold. Outside Lucas had found it bitterly cold, and Jo had only a summer skirt, a singlet and a thin cardigan on. Her shivering made Lucas turned his head at the movement and he stood up from his position in the seat opposite her and hastily left the room. When he returned he was carrying two blankets in his arms and he pulled her off her the chair and onto the floor to be closer to the fire, and placed a blanket on the floor beneath them and draped the other one around her shoulders.

"That should keep you toasty," he said.

"Thanks," she said gratefully, "I wasn't really dressed for the evening,"

"I thought the best place to stay tonight might be beside the fire, seeing as it's so cold," he said, after a pause.

She nodded in agreement, "It is so much warmer here. But I should go and check on Malcolm first."

Lucas shook his head, "don't bother. I looked in on him not long ago and he was fine."

Lucas got up to blow out the candles and then lay down not far from Jo by the light of the fire. Jo passed the remaining blanket to him and he pulled it over himself.

As Jo lay quietly listening to the sound of Lucas' breathing she thought to herself that there was something extremely comforting about sleeping by the warmth of the fire and having Lucas not far from her side. After a few minutes she was surprised to hear Lucas's voice break the silence to say softly, "You still awake Jo?"

"Yes," she replied quietly, then added," it's nice isn't it? Sleeping by the fire?"

"It is," Lucas replied. "We should do it more often."

Jo replied with a sort of a contented murmer which he took as agreement.

Lucas impulsively reached over and pulled Jo towards him so that her head rested against his shoulder and said softly, "You know if you're very good I might tell you a story,"

"I'm always good," she replied sleepily, and then added with a muted giggle, "but especially so today."

"Is that so?," he replied thoughtfully, "well I guess I had better start with the story then," he said, gently stroking her hair back into place from where it had fallen to cover her face.

"I like stories," she said contently. "Will it have a happy ending?" she asked hopefully.

He considered her question for a moment, then replied, "Yes, I do believe it will." She sighed happily and moved her head a little closer to his ear so that she could hear him better as he began in a low voice, "I'll tell you a tale that my father used to tell me when I was a boy, and before that my grandfather used to tell him, as his father had done before for him. It concerns a dog with only three legs but an excellent bark, a wily fox and a farmer with twelve prize hens and a wife who could scream like a fishwife and wield kitchen implements with the best of them…."

"Yes," Jo replied, looking up at him, fascinated to hear where the story would go.

**

Unfortunately Jo didn't find out. She listened intently for the first fifteen minutes, but towards the end, even though she was captivated by the story found that her eyelids begin to flicker uncontrollably as the stresses of the day finally caught up with her.

By the time Lucas came to the end of the story, she was sleeping peacefully in his arms and he paused to kiss her softly on the forehead before settling down to sleep himself.

She slept peacefully until a few hours later when she was started awake by Lucas thrashing about violently in his sleep. "Lucas," she cried alarmed, "Lucas wake up," she said again, holding his arm and shaking him. After a few moments he awoke, an expression of panic on his face. "Lucas, its ok," she said softly. "You were having a nightmare but it was just a dream," she added soothingly. "You're ok now," she sat up beside him and patted his hand comfortingly and after a moment got up and headed toward the kitchen.

She picked up the kettle and then stoked up the fire and placed it on the grate they had set up over the fire and waited for it to boil. After a few minutes she picked it up and headed back to the kitchen and then returned with two cups of tea in hand, his, black with no sugar, the way he liked it, hers not the way she liked it as she had to make do without milk, but they did have sugar so she added a smidgen of that and stirred it briskly.

He took the cup gratefully without any comment. She watched him for a moment as she blew on her drink to cool it a little, then started tentatively, "I suppose you were dreaming of Russia."

"You suppose right," he replied after a second's hesitation.

"It's to be expected really," she said quietly, then added softly, "sometimes I have dreams too."

He looked at her for a moment, uncertain whether he should say what was on his mind, "Of Boscard?" he asked eventually.

She looked down and nodded, "and sometimes my friends too, the ones we lost. Adam and Ben or Zaf or Colin – though you didn't know those two."

"Adam I don't mind so much. He always looked after me and I like to think he still is somehow. Remembering him makes me miss him so but it doesn't hurt half so much as it does with Zaf," she stopped and paused," you read his file?"

Lucas nodded, recalling the picture of the handsome young officer who had met the worst possible end one could imagine for a fellow human being. Lucas finished his drink in silence and put down his mug and commented quietly, "you know in some ways you remind me of Elizabeta. In other ways not."

"I do?" Jo asked, surprised at his comparison. She really couldn't imagine what she would have in common with his Russian ex wife. "How?"

"You both feel things too deeply. And sometimes you get a look about you that she used to have, a determination to do something, no matter what the obstacles."

"I don't think I could possibly be anything like her," Jo said decisively.

"Hmm, well you might be surprised," replied Lucas, and seeing her expression, added soothingly, thinking he might have annoyed her with the comparison, "but you're different too, very different in a lot of ways."

Jo looked at him like she still wasn't convinced by his comparison but didn't comment further. She finished her drink a couple of minutes later and waited for Lucas to do the same. He put down his mug a moment later then commented casually, "you never got to hear the end of the story you know."

"Didn't I?" Jo asked, looking confused.

"No you didn't. But we could finish it now if you like."

She nodded, "yes, I think we should," she finished definitely.

"Alright," Lucas replied. "Then come here then and I'll finish it."

She moved to lie against Lucas once more and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer so that her head nestled against his chest.

"Now if you recall," Lucas began, "we got up to the point where our friend Timmy the three legged dog was staring down the wily fox when the farmers wife entered the scene armed with a large rolling pin and her three rather sturdily built daughters in tow all with voices as shrill as hers…"

"I do recall that," Jo murmured, nodding her head as Lucas resumed his tale once more.

**

_Hmm. So hands up who would like Lucas to tell them a story by the fire? _


	17. Chapter 17

**Day Eight: 6:54am **

The next morning Jo got up early. After she'd taken Malcolm some tea and checked on how he was doing she went to get changed. It was a pleasant relief that she was able to put on something different that morning for a change.

Yesterday when she was fossicking through one of the cupboards she'd come across a couple of items of clothing. Two dresses, a cardigan and a petticoat. From the displays in one of rooms she'd learnt that the castle had been inhabited by an aristocratic family until the 1970s. In some of the rooms they'd come across things that looked like they had belonged to them. She suspected this was also the case with the clothing. She'd already noticed that both Lucas and Malcolm had found themselves new outfits from some castoffs they'd located. Lucas, in particular had looked a bit odd in a dashing kind of a way in a tweed jacket and corduroy trousers, despite the fact that they were clearly too short for him.

Of the dresses she had liked the blue one the best and decided to wash it so that she could wear it tomorrow. It was cut quite simply in a '60s style with puffed sleeves and a gather at the waist and finished a bit above the knee. It would do nicely and, taking into account there were no mirrors in the castle, only her compact mirror in her handbag which she used to put on her lipstick, she would have to trust that it looked passable.

Lucas looked up, startled from his breakfast, when Jo entered the dining room. "Good morning," she greeted him politely. "Nice to see it's a bit warmer today," she commented smiling pleasantly.

He found himself so distracted by the sight of her he completely omitted to reply to her conversation starter. Her dress was a pretty powder blue colour and quite plain and on most women, he thought, it would have looked quite unremarkable - demure even. But on Jo the way it molded and clung to her lovely figure just made her look so impossibly sexy he had difficulty concentrating on the joint task of sipping his coffee and eating his breakfast at the same time and found himself having to put his cup down so that he could concentrate on doing at least one thing correctly.

"Where did you find that then?" Lucas asked, blinking.

"In one of the rooms. I found it yesterday and washed it. Seeing as there's no one here and I only have two outfits I thought I might borrow it. I think the colour's quite nice," she remarked chattily.

"Yes, it is," Lucas murmered, after a pause, vaguely conscious that he ought to say something at this point. He couldn't recall ever having seen her in a dress before but it definitely suited her. Perhaps it was just as well she hadn't worn them in the past because there was no way she would go unnoticed on undercover work looking like she did now.

Jo looked up at him, observing an odd expression on his face. "Are you ok Lucas? – you seem a bit preoccupied – you haven't had any news have you?" she enquired, thinking of Lucas's comment that Jim would contact him on his mobile if he needed him.

He shook his head, "No," he replied shortly. "I was just thinking about what to do about Malcolm that's all," he improvised.

"Yes," Jo replied. "I don't know what we should do either."

"Oh," she started, "I forgot to say that yesterday afternoon I found an ancient doctors handbook in one of the rooms and it had a little entry about strokes and I wrote down what it said. It wasn't particularly helpful but it's the only information I've been able to get hold of."

Jo flitted across the room to rummage through her handbag and extracted a notebook and returned to the table. Lucas got up from his seat to stand by her side as she flipped though the pages. "I copied it out because the text was really hard to read – you know that sort of curvy old writing that's hard to make out," she chattered as she tried to locate the right page.

Lucas was standing quite close to her and found it difficult to stop himself from moving closer still and give in to the temptation to let his hands circle her waist and lift her to her feet so that he could kiss her until she was quite properly breathless.

"Who's Rob?" Lucas asked, his eye falling on a blank page with the words, "Rob. 7.30 – Stone Estate" on it.

"Oh - this guy I know," Jo replied noncommittally.

"Your boyfriend?" Lucas asked, his hand unconsciously clenching into a fist as he watched her expression as she continued to flip though the pages her eyes fixed on the notebook.

"Not exactly. I only met him two or three weeks ago. We just went out to dinner . Twice. He's nice though," she added, smiling to herself. "Ahh - here is it then," she announced

"I see," Lucas replied frowning, taking the notebook from her. "What does he do then?"

"He's a lawyer."

Lucas snorted. "Unprincipled, the lot of them," he replied shortly. "Can't trust 'em."

Jo had already heard a few similar jibes from her friend's when they heard what he did and was becoming a little irritated by the way everyone seemed to consider themselves at liberty to take a few cheap shots at his profession. "I like him. He seems honest," she protested, finally shifting her attention from the book to look up at Lucas.

"Do you know where he is now?," Lucas questioned casually, unable to resist asking.

"In the Italian Alps on holiday last I heard."

Lucas said nothing. He was probably fine then. For some reason that didn't please him.

"Done with the questions now?" Jo asked shortly, thinking to herself that, though he professed not to be interested in other people's private lives, Lucas was clearly every bit as bad as the gossips at work.

Lucas nodded and began to read through Jo's neatly shaped handwriting. Unfortunately the text revealed nothing much of interest. It suggested that "palpitations of the nerves which render the patient's limbs immobile" were best treated by "extensive bedrest and a thorough course of leaches."

"Leaches!," Lucas exclaimed. "I don't think Malcolm would thank us for that."

"I know," Jo agreed, shuddering. "It's revolting. I think we'd best stick to our own course of treatment."

Lucas nodded and returned his attention to trying to concentrate on his breakfast.

**

_Hmm, still only part way through breakfast here. And if Lucas had his way I think there might have been some sex at the breakfast table. Well at least until Rob was mentioned. That would have been ...interesting. I__ am laughing now. _


	18. Chapter 18

After breakfast Lucas got up to go and test the gas canister on some of the appliances. Before he had gotten more than a couple of paces from the table, he saw Jo shake her head and comment, "those trousers do look odd, Lucas. They're much too short - I could fix them for you, you know," she offered.

"What – oh these, they're fine, I wouldn't bother," Lucas answered distractedly.

"I think they look really odd," Jo repeated, "people will look at you if you go out in them, you do look rather strange," she continued to press her point. "There's a sewing kit in one of the rooms – I could fix them for you. Yes," she added, nodding to herself, "you wait there and I'll get it."

Before Lucas could open his mouth to protest again she had run off in search of the kit.

She returned two minutes later with the sewing kit in hand and a pleased expression on her face. "Stand still," she ordered, "this won't take long."

She crouched down at his feet and pulled up the hem of his trouser, folded it back so that it was reversed and proceeded to snip the stiching and let down the extra material and then sew it up again having let another two inches worth of material down.

Lucas reluctantly submitted to her directions, and stood tapping his foot on the ground waiting for her to finish.

"Are you done yet?" he asked grumpily a minute after she had started.

"No," Jo replied, shaking her head. "It will take a couple of minutes still. And your tapping isn't helping either," she added shortly.

"The reason I'm tapping is because I have other things that I should be doing right now," he replied impatiently. "Things that are more important than whether my trousers look a bit odd to you."

"It's not just me who would notice it Lucas," Jo replied, starting to become irritated by his manner. "Other people would too, and you don't want to draw any more attention to yourself than is necessary. And I do wish you would stop that tapping – you're making it much more difficult to undo the stitches," she said sharply.

"If I stop tapping you'll forget that I have other places to be," he replied crossly, and muttered, "and I have to ask myself why is this taking so long."

Jo looked up at him, her gaze narrowing, "I expect the reason it's taking so long is because you happen to be the most bad tempered individual I could ever hope to encounter and very definitely the least cooperative."

"Well," he replied shortly, "you'll know not to attempt to try out your dressmaking skills on my clothes while I'm in them in the future, now won't you?"

He added peevishly, "Though you could always practice on your boyfriend. I'm sure he'd appreciate your efforts."

Jo had several pins in her mouth and found herself unable to reply to his comments. If she could have done so she would have agreed that Rob would have been far more grateful than Lucas was proving to be but as she couldn't speak she contented herself with the thought that Lucas was in desperate need of being brought into line and she would be on the lookout for an opportunity to do so.

**

_Next chapter (or maybe the one after) I will be changing the story rating to M due to some Lucas/ Jo naughtiness and you will have to change the story rating setting to get it. So, tune it or not depending on your taste. _


	19. Chapter 19

_More with the Lucas is unreasonable this chapter – he is quite funny when he's like this _

**

After she had finished with him, Lucas was allowed to go and attend to other things. He had proved to be no more gracious than before when he was released, rolling his eyes when Jo announced she was finished and muttering ,"finally," to himself before striding out of the room.

Jo wondered if he was deliberately trying to annoy her for some reason. Perhaps he didn't enjoy her company or couldn't stand to be kept in one place for too long. Whatever it was it was making him quite foul tempered and she had had enough of it. If an opportunity came her way to make things a little unpleasant for Lucas she would gladly take it. Maybe then he would stop being so insufferable.

Lucas spent the morning doing "man's work" as he put it when she'd asked what he was off to do, while Jo continued touring the castle rooms looking to see what she could find. Just after one o'clock she made her way to the kitchen to start to prepare some lunch for herself and Malcolm. Lucas, she decided, could look after himself.

After she had sat with Malcolm and helped him with his lunch she returned to the kitchen. She had nearly finished her lunch when Lucas suddenly appeared in the doorway, looking hot and bothered. Jo said nothing, and waited to see what he would have to say for himself.

"I'm done," he announced abruptly. "Did you make me lunch too?" he demanded.

Jo shook her head sweetly, "I'm afraid not. I thought you'd be too busy with your 'man's work' for things like eating," she replied, biting her lip to stop herself from smiling.

She could tell from Lucas' face that he wasn't impressed by her reply but he said nothing, only made a rather huffy noise.

Jo relented after a moment, suddenly thinking of something that would rather amuse her if only Lucas could be persuaded to play along. "Lucas," she began, "I could make you something to eat, if you would do something for me in return."

"What?" he asked shortly, clearly interested in her offer but not wanting to show it.

"Well, there's a Knight's suit in the hall, you know the one with the armour and the sword I was thinking that it would be funny if you put it on. You know just for a laugh – to see what it looked like."

He considered her offer. "And you would make me lunch if I try it on?"

She nodded, waiting for his reply.

"Alright, I'll try it on but on the condition that you make me lunch and I think you should try that dress on that's beside it too."

There was a replica of a fourteeth century court dress hanging on wall beside the suit.

"I don't think it's meant for trying on," Jo replied doubtfully, "I think its just for display."

"And the suit isn't?" Lucas replied shortly, putting an end to that argument.

"Well, ok," she replied, reluctantly.

They moved into the hall and Jo immediately went to pick up the suit, surprised by how heavy it was, and passed it to Lucas.

He pulled on the heavy chainmail suit on top of his clothing. It was a struggle to get it on and Lucas was not a patient man.

"What the…" he began angrily - about to start demonstrating his familiarity with some of the more colourful turns of phrases in the English language, only to be interrupted by Jo saying mildly, "Like this Lucas," as she adjusted the suit to sit properly and passed him his vizour. He pulled it on reluctantly.

It had been worthwhile getting him to try it on. She was short of entertainment round here and he certainly looked the part.

"You do look quite terrifying," she giggled. "I don't think I'd take you on."

The suit was hot, and heavy and restrictive. Walking alone must have been a challenge, let alone fighting.

"No, well, you wouldn't be required to," he said shortly. "All you need do is stand on the sidelines waving your colours and acting the damsel in distress. Now I have the suit on, are you going to put that dress on?" he added impatiently.

"No, I don't think so," said Jo decisively, with the air of someone who was very pleased with her subterfuge. "I just wanted to see you in the suit really. It's very good – though the legs aren't quite long enough."

"Come on, put the dress on," Lucas urged, annoyed at her deception.

He supposed he would have to turn around while she put it on, but he continued to be hopeful that he might not. Then he might get to see more of what was underneath her dress. He pondered that thought for a moment. It was quite an incentive to get her to try it on. And now she had reneged on her side of the deal. There was nothing that annoyed him more.

Jo shook her head, smiling to herself.

"I would have never tried this on if I'd known you weren't going to keep your end of the bargain. I can't believe I've been taken in by such a devious little minx," he exclaimed angrily. "I suppose you aren't even going to make me lunch then?"

Once again she shook her head, her eyes sparkling.

Lucas continued to mutter to himself, most of it unintelligible except for the repetition of the words "deception" and "cunning" and "a wolf in sheep's clothing" for a couple of minutes until Jo became irritated enough to step forward.

"Do you think you're quite stable in that suit Lucas?" Jo asked deceptively sweetly, "It does look heavy. I wondered if something was to knock you off balance whether you might just topple over, weighed down as you are."

She leaned forward and gave him a gentle but persistent push. Her theory had been right. He attempted to grab her and take her down with him, not wanting to be the only sinking ship, but his movements were slowed by the heaviness of the suit and she lept away from his grasp, giggling violently. A second later he keeled backwards onto the floor with the precision of a neatly sawn log falling in a forest. Unlike a log his fall was not silent, but accompanied by loud cursing and language that was distinctly ungentlemanly like.

"That was brilliant," she said, continuing to giggle as he lay on the floor. "Once you started to fall there was no stopping you. But you do have to work on your language, because you just didn't sound very medieval to me. Perhaps you should try harder next time."

Though she couldn't see it, inside his suit, Lucas' expression was one of pure outrage.

**

Ha ha, this does amuse me very much. I like Jo when she is a bit evil like this and Lucas is also very funny when he is being bad tempered. Naughtiness next chapter.


	20. Chapter 20

_Little warning here: some sex this chapter so don't read if it's not your thing. _

_I will keep my comments that surely sex scenes involving Lucas are everybody's thing to myself. _

**

On the floor Lucas was struggling with his suit and was slowly peeling pieces of the heavy costume from his body. When he pulled the vizour off it revealed that his expression was dark with rage. He was definitely not amused.

Unfortunately Jo didn't see his face and made the mistake of walking around him only to find one long leg shoot up to trip her up as she passed, making her topple to the ground, She found herself scrambled on the floor with a cross looking Lucas beside her. "I didn't think your little prank was very amusing," he said, propping himself up his elbow and leaning over her so that his face was only a few inches above hers.

Jo, still grinning from the success of her little diversion, had her face turned to the side and was looking away from him. She smiled and then said softly, more to herself than anyone else - "I did." One look at Lucas' expression told her that, in hindsight, it was not a wise comment to make in the circumstances. "Is that so," Lucas said with a slow deliberation.

"Well, you know I have been known to play a prank or two in my time too," he replied, leaning over to lie on top of her and putting his hands around her neck to quickly unhook the gold chain she was wearing, "like this for example."

Lucas held the chain above her head with a teasing expression, ignoring her protesting sounds. "You know in Medieval times it was customary for a lady to give a knight something of hers to wear when he was in armour and about to engage in warfare. You wanted me to wear the suit and I did so now you owe me something of yours in return."

"But you're not fighting Lucas," Jo said gravely, sounding annoyed. "That's just stealing. Give me back my necklace – its special to me," she added reaching up to try to wrestle it from his grasp.

"I don't think I will. If you want it you'll have to get it off me."

She was trying but it was proving difficult. Lucas had long arms and he seemed intent on keeping it to himself.

Lucas couldn't resist the opportunity to flirt with her – to tease her. He had been aware that Jo was a bad choice for him and he had fought to suppress his desire for her for as long as he could. Even if she weren't for the fact that she was his colleague and they were living together and couldn't afford to engage in the kind of squabbles that usually accompanied a relationship her history meant that any relationship would be far more complex than he was looking for. And on top of that there was Rob. Lucas scowled at the thought. Even though he had never met him he was certain to be irritating - and devious. Lawyers always were. And most definitely no good for Jo - of that he was sure.

But looking at her now Jo was just so damn lovely and irresistible and he wanted her so much that he couldn't ignore the demands of his body any longer. He should have been stuck here with someone frumpy and middle aged he thought crossly. Then he wouldn't have these kind of problems.

"Give it back to me," Jo snapped, still trying to catch his hand, her face becoming increasingly flushed with annoyance.

"You can have it back if I get a kiss," Lucas said cheekily, watching her face to see how she would react.

"Lucas," she protested, "that's not fair."

"Those are my terms," he replied smugly, shrugging. "Take them or leave them."

She watched him for a moment, hoping that he would change his mind then gave in ungraciously seeing from his expression that wasn't going to.

"Fine," she replied grumpily. "You'll get your kiss then – though I don't know why you insist on being so silly." She leant over so that her lips brushed briefly against his cheek. Her lips were soft and when she leaned in to him he caught the scent of the roses growing in the castle garden on her from the rosewater she'd made to wash her face with, but the kiss was completely without passion.

He sat up and caught her shoulders as she leant away from his body and pulled her towards him, "That's not what I had in mind. I'm not your grandmother you know. I was thinking more of something like this –"

"Lucas – what are you -," Jo began, but the rest of her protest was drowned out by his lips on hers. She had thought he was just being playful and would only steal a quick kiss but instead it was unexpectedly passionate and demanding. And so intense it took her breath away. When it ended he continued to hold her firmly to him and placed his arm possessively around her shoulder so that her lips remained only a few inches from his and watched her closely, desire clearly written on his face. She caught his eye for a moment, then looked down at the ground, blushing.

It was strange being kissed like that. Since her brief fling with Ben she'd only dated two men. The first – Andy, a city banker, she'd been on one date with and found that by the second she was so bored of hearing him boast about how much money he'd made and what kind of car he drove that she'd had to let him down gently at the end of the evening by telling him she thought they would suit better as friends. The second of course was Rob. On their first date he'd been a perfect gentleman. Witty, charming and attentive towards her. The evening had ended with him placing a soft kiss on her cheek and asking politely whether he could see her again. Their second date had finished with a little kiss. Like the rest of their evening it had been very pleasant, but it was nothing like being kissed by Lucas.

Jo collected her thoughts and looked up at Lucas. "So now I get my chain back," she stated, determined that he should keep his side of their deal. She held out her hand and waited for him to return it to her.

"You do," Lucas replied coolly. "But I'll put it on for you."

"You don't need to do that -" Jo began, only to be interrupted by Lucas saying brusquely. "Do you want it back then or not?"

She swallowed and nodded. Lucas leant forward to fasten the chain once more around her neck, his hands lingering on the sapphire pendant in the middle of the necklace as it rested just above her breasts.

After he had finished Lucas stretched his hand forward to take her hand which was lying at her side and laced his fingers though hers so that they intertwined. That was what he wanted to do to her. To merge with her so they could be one. He leaned forward again and kissed her and this time he could feel her hesitantly begin to return his kiss. After a moment he got to his feet still holding her closely to him. He had intended for them to move to his bedroom but the effect she was having on him meant that they never got that far.

Once they were on their feet his lips meet hers again with a breathless urgency and after a moment he pushed her backwards against the stone wall. He continued to kiss her, first on the lips and then taking his hand to smooth the way for his lips, brushed her hair aside and kissed the side of her neck just beside her ears, so that she could feel his breath hot against her skin. She moved her hands to rest around his shoulders, her fingers digging in to his skin through his clothing.

His hands moved to the zip on her dress and he undid it in one stroke, his hands moving impatiently to push it to the floor. Beneath it she was wearing a pretty white lace bra and a pair of french knickers and Lucas thought to himself that she looked like some kind of pin up from the 1940s. So lovely, and so very, very sexy he thought as he leant in to place a hand on her waist. Jo put her hands to his chest and began to fiddle with his buttons. It took some time for her to get through them all and Lucas kept interrupting her by stealing kisses from her as she worked, making her giggle. The whole process had been far too time consuming in Lucas's opinion so once his shirt was off he took the liberty of swiftly removing his pants himself. He had always had a liking for efficiency and for that reason hastily divested Jo of her bra as well.

"Well," he said, taking in the sight of her half naked in front of him with approval once he had done his work, his eyes hungrily drinking in her perfect curves and golden skin, "I have to say I like what I see."

"Do you?" Jo replied hesitantly. He nodded enthusiastically and followed up his comment by placing his hands down her sides and then moving his hands upwards to linger on her breasts, cupping them so that he could feel their weight in his palms. She could see now that he was telling the truth, as his arousal was obvious.

He pushed her back further so that she was pressed firmly against the wall and let his hands rove over her body as her hands explored his chest and shoulders, pleased by the feeling of strength and the lean tension in his muscles. After a moment he impatiently kicked his boxers to the ground and the suddenly lifted her so that her back was up against the wall and her legs rested either side of his hips. She wrapped her legs around him tightly. He held her gaze until she felt almost dizzy with tension then finally he reached down to push the crotch of her knickers to one side and entered her. The satisfaction of being inside her was intense and she sighed as he began to push her body up and down against the wall in time with his as they sought some relief from the unbearable desire that had overtaken them both.


	21. Chapter 21

They did eventually reach Lucas' room that evening. Lucas had chosen one of the grander rooms in the castle which had been beautifully restored to its former glory. Jo could be found lying on her tummy on the gracious four poster bed eating strawberries and chocolate and wearing nothing but a pair of knickers. Lucas had long since decided that was very much the way he preferred her. Lucas' previous grumpiness had mysteriously vanished without a trace, and he hadn't minded having to fix himself something to eat after all. In fact he had been quite happy to do so and to make Jo a little snack also. He had even found a bottle of champagne in the celler and had returned with it and two glasses in hand, detouring along the way to check on Malcolm and see if he would like something to drink. Malcolm had been delighted by his offer and Lucas had helped him to finish his drink.

When he was back in the bedroom, Lucas leaned over to Jo and kissed her.

"You taste of strawberries," he commented his hands lingering for a moment on her lips which had been stained a cherry red colour.

"Same goes for you," she replied distractedly, now focusing her attention on the task of unwrapping the last chocolate left in the castle.

Lucas had found their lovemaking to be delicious. And very sweet. Like Jo herself. He had discovered probably a hundred things he didn't know about Jo that he liked that day. Like that she had a sprinkling of golden freckles on the tops of her shoulders, that her eyes were even more beautiful up close and that she would a make little noise like a kitten when he stroked her hair just above her forehead. And he wanted more of her.

"Do you think if I poured you another glass of champagne I might succeed in seducing you again?" Lucas asked hopefully.

Jo put down her chocolate and looked at him for a moment, "I think it could just tip the balance in your favour," she replied thoughtfully, before breaking into a smile. She rather hoped he would pour her another glass now. She supposed she ought to have anticipated that given Lucas was good at everything he would be good at that too but as she hadn't really considered it before and it had been quite a pleasant surprise.

"Another glass it is then," he replied, flashing her a charming smile.

When she had finished her drink, Lucas promptly removed it from her hand and placed it on the bedside table.

"Right then," he announced, flipping her over on to her back, "now for the pay off from that drink you promised me."

Jo giggled and ran her hands through his hair. She liked the way the inky blackness contrasted with the vivid blue of his eyes.

Lucas had discovered that she was extremely ticklish and showed no mercy to her.

After a minute or two of his teasing she managed to wriggle away from him. She had only made it to the other side of the bed when Lucas grabbed hold of her and pinned her beneath him, one of his arms holding her hands above her head as he kissed her neck. His other arm roved down the side of her body and he shifted her leg so that he was positioned between her thighs. When he stopped kissing her and looked up after a few minutes he saw that she was lying completely still and was crying. Softly and silently.

He released her arms hastily and wondered what he should do here.

Up until a moment ago Jo had been happy. It had been completely different with Lucas and she knew he would never harm her. She had tried desperately to put that behind her and thought she was beginning to succeed but the realization that it had taken only one moment for it all to come back was devastating. Just one second when she had closed her eyes and something in her memory had recalled a time when it hadn't been Lucas's hands on her. It was so clear in her mind and suddenly she could smell the scent of stale cigarettes mingled with alcohol and someone else's sweat and feel the icy steel of a revolver pressed against her temple. And it hurt still and left her with a dreadful sinking feeling that it was something she would never quite manage to forget and wondering how many more times she would have to relive it whenever someone touched her.

"Jo?" Lucas said quietly, "I'm sorry Jo, I wasn't thinking. Don't cry darling." He trailed his fingers across her cheek, wiping away the tears that had trickled down her face.

Lucas couldn't stand seeing her so upset and cursed himself for being so stupid. At the time he had just been being playful, but he should have thought about what he was doing. For forgetting that for Jo this would be difficult and that he would have to be careful with her and be gentle so as not to awaken any unpleasant memories. He remembered what she'd been like when he'd first arrived back in England – so fragile, like a broken doll, he'd thought at the time. Over the past couple of months she'd pulled herself back together and after this evening he'd assumed she was mostly mended, but he supposed that had been too simplistic. It wasn't like his memories of prison would ever leave him so why should she be any different. He just hadn't anticipated that the mood would change so quickly.

Jo tried to control herself and after a minute or two succeeded in stopping her tears. But she had ruined everything. She had been happy but she could see now that this would make things much, much worse between her and Lucas. Not only would they have the awkwardness of a one night stand but he would revise his opinion of her and see her as some kind of silly, overemotional, hysterical girl who got upset over things for no apparent reason. And he would know that there was something fundamentally abnormal about her. She knew everyone had thought that about her when she had come back from leave but she had worked so hard over the past few months to regain their confidence once more. And she had had to work especially hard to show Lucas that she was trustworthy after he had been so cross with her when she had dropped the tray of drinks while undercover. And now she had blown it with Lucas once more. She didn't think he would forget this time.

"Sorry," she replied, moving to the edge of the bed so that her back was turned to him. "Don't think that this has anything to do with you - its – its silly really."

"I know what it's about," Lucas replied shortly, "and its my fault. I should have thought about what I was doing but I wasn't. I'm sorry I upset you. You know that I wouldn't hurt you, don't you? That I only want to take care of you and for you to be happy."

He wished she would look at him.

He tried again, moving round to crouch in front of her and take her hand, "Come on Jo, it's alright, you're safe now, I'll look after you sweetheart," he said encouragingly.

Jo sniffed and continued to look at the floor while wondering why Lucas was being so nice to her. It was so strange. Now that Adam and Ben were gone, at work people didn't do "nice." She and Ros had come to understand each other better - to know each other - but by her nature Ros just wasn't a tea and sympathy kind of person either.

"Jo?" Lucas said softly, placing his hand on her cheek tenderly. He looked closer to find there was a little red smudge on her hairline just above her ears. "What's this?" he wondered aloud as he removed it with his finger and examined it.

"Strawberry," he announced after considering it for a few seconds, "you had a smidge of strawberry in your hair – did you know that?" he asked, looking at her teasingly.

"That was you!" she exclaimed, giving him a reproachful glance, her voice a little shaky still, "you left the strawberry there when you were kissing me."

"Did I now?" Lucas repeated to himself. "Shall I put it back then?"

"No," she replied, trying to work out whether he was teasing her, "that would be silly."

"Hmm," he replied. "I suppose you're right. Now," he said, sitting down beside her and taking her in his arms, "I was thinking about tomorrow, and how late it is and how I should really get some rest – and you too," he added his hand moving to stroke her hair.

He continued softly, "and what would be very nice would be if you were to lie here quietly with me, and put your head on my shoulder and then tomorrow morning I could wake up and see your pretty face." He paused and looked down at her, "what do you think about that idea?"

She looked up at him for a moment and then said quietly, "I think that would be nice too."

Lucas lay down and waited for her to settle beside him, then pulled the blanket over them.

"What do you think we might have for breakfast tomorrow then darling?" he asked, shifting so that her head nestled into his shoulder. "I thought I might cook for a change. We could have pancakes. Would you like that?"

She nodded and replied, "I think Malcolm would too."

She smiled to herself and added, "if you make the pancakes I could make some hot chocolates, there's a special drink mix in the pantry and there are some marshmallows to go on the top too. One for you, and one for me and one for Malcolm. I've made them before and Malcolm really likes them. And then maybe a bit later on we could play some chess."

They had found an ancient chess set in one of the rooms and she knew that was one of Lucas's favorite things to do.

"I like that idea," said Lucas kissing her cheek and absently playing with her hair.

"Lucas," Jo began, "when you make the pancakes will you be wearing an apron?" she asked, thinking of the frilly pink affair she had had to don earlier to keep herself clean when she worked in the kitchen. It had been the only one available.

"I think not," he replied decisively. "I do recall what happened last time you encouraged me to dress up. Perhaps you could wear it. Actually," he started thoughtfully, "perhaps you could wear it and nothing else."

"It's only a half apron you know," Jo replied promptly, not really thinking through her reply. "It wouldn't really do as outerwear at all."

"Yes, I had considered that actually." Lucas said shortly.

Jo looked up at him briefly to see that he was smiling to himself at the thought. She decided not to comment. "Shouldn't we check on Malcolm before we go to sleep?" she asked after a moment.

Lucas nodded, "I better go now – just give me a couple of minutes."

Lucas returned five minutes later and settled down once more to finally get some sleep. He wrapped his arms around Jo who nestled against him and closed her eyes with a happy but exhausted sigh.

**

_I like this chapter. They do make a very cute couple. I wonder what will happen next?? And remember to review me and let me know how you are liking the story. _


	22. Chapter 22

**Day Nine: 6: 46am**

Lucas woke the next morning to the sound of rain beating down against the windowpane. Outside the sky looked gloomy and foreboading. But inside the castle Jo lay sleeping in his arms, and he could feel her rhythm of her heart beat and hear her breathing quietly she lay snuggled against his chest. Lucas paused to wonder what life was like now outside the castle walls – in the villages where the influx of city dwellers was already making life more dangerous and more insecure than it had ever been before and in the cities where life was becoming an increasingly cheap commodity – far less precious than food or water or guns.

Lucas usually liked to be in the thick of the action but right now he was grateful that his only role was to look after the welfare of his colleagues – that today he needn't be concerned with saving the world – though no doubt there would come a time when they would have to focus his attention on that once again. Now his only concern was to take care of Jo and Malcolm. Here they were safe – sheltered from the storms buffeting the world outside.

Lucas was confident that he could survive on the outside – his years in prison had taught him that. Danger and violence were a way of life there. But it would be more difficult if Jo and Malcolm were with him. Malcolm because his condition obviously meant he couldn't be moved easily and Jo because she would attract attention.

Lucas looked at his watch and saw it was nearly seven. He decided he had better check on Malcolm, given that he had spent so little time with him yesterday. Malcolm had always been a good friend to him and he wasn't sure he had returned the favour particularly well these past few days. He gently extracted Jo from him arms, careful not to wake her and got up from the side of the bed.

Lucas was surprised to find Malcolm was awake and lying quietly in his bed.

"How are you Malcolm?" Lucas asked softly, pulling up a chair beside him.

"Oh, you know, getting by," he replied, giving him one of the odd kind of half smiles that was all he could manage these days.

"Can I get you anything?" Lucas asked, after a moment," a drink or something to eat perhaps?"

Malcolm shook his head, "no – I'm fine and it's unreasonable to expect you and Jo to be continually running round after me."

"We don't mind," Lucas replied gently, smiling at him. "It's no trouble."

He could see a frown beginning to form on one side of Malcolm's face, "but I do mind," he replied. "And no matter how much you disguise it with politeness the truth is I am a bother, I'm a burden to both you and Jo."

"Malcolm –" Lucas began to protest, "you're no trouble at all, we –"

Malcolm interrupted suddenly, "Lucas I've been thinking these past few days and I've made a decision. This isn't how I want to spend the rest of my life – I don't want to be a burden on other people. I don't want to keep living like this," he paused and added gravely, "I would rather just go quietly now with some dignity."

Lucas stared at him for a moment, startled by his revelation. "You're saying you want to die?'

Malcolm nodded. "There's very little chance of regaining movement and I don't want to live like this. You know me. I don't like people to fuss over me. I don't want to be a burden and I just want to go out with a little dignity."

Lucas didn't want to hear this from Malcolm. He didn't have many friends and Malcolm was one of the best he could have asked for. "You can't," Lucas said firmly. "You can't leave us. We want you here with us."

Malcolm sighed, and said wearily. "There comes a time when you have to stop thinking about what other people want and put yourself first."

Lucas understood his position, painful though it was for him to accept it. It was almost exactly what he had said to Jo only a few days ago.

Malcolm looked at him sadly, "The reality is I'm just a burden and I will always be from now on. You need to think of yourself - of Jo. It's alright at the moment but there will come a time when even here there won't be enough food for everyone and I don't want you or Jo to starve because I'm taking your share when I don't even want to be here."

"And," Malcolm continued, "I need your help Lucas. I can't do it myself. I need you to do it for me – to take me away from here. Now is the time when I need you to be a friend to me."

"I can't do it," said Lucas, shaking his head, disgusted by the thought of what he was asking him to do.

Malcolm gave Lucas an imploring look and said passionately, "What I said is the truth Lucas – even here at the castle there will come a time when there isn't enough for everyone and you will have to make some choices. You're young, Jo too – you deserve a future. I'm 63 – I've had a fair innings. But you've got so much more living to do. And Jo too – don't you think she deserves a chance at happiness, to get married, to have a family?"

"We have enough food," Lucas replied, shaking his head.

"For now," Malcolm replied, his eyes troubled, "but what about in a month? Two months? Three months? What then?"

He stopped and then said softly, "take my pillow Lucas – take my pillow and put me to sleep, that's all I'm asking."

Lucas looked at him a long while and considered what he was asking of him. Malcolm was asking him as a friend to let him die the way he chose, to go with some dignity. Malcolm had always been dignified. And self sufficient – never wanting or asking anything of others. He supposed that the life he would be forced to live would offend all of the values that Malcolm held dear.

Lucas nodded reluctantly. "Ok – I'll do what you're asking but only if you're sure this is what you really want."

"I'm sure of it," Malcolm replied with certainty.

Lucas considered for a moment whether he should fetch Jo, then decided against it. This decision was painful enough for him to make alone. Of all of the team Jo was the most likely to be troubled by a decision such as this, to be the one to wake in the middle of the night with Malcolm's face on her mind. It was best to leave her out of it – to let it be his decision and to tell Jo that he had died peacefully in the night.

"We'll miss you," Lucas said taking Malcolm's hand and sitting there quietly beside him.

After a few minutes silence Malcolm looked up at him and nodded, "I'm ready. I want you to do it now."

Lucas moved forward and picked up the spare pillow lying beside Malcolm and with a slow deliberation he placed it firmly over Malcolm's pale face and held it down, his hands shaking as he did so.

He didn't know how much time had passed but it seemed like an age when he looked up to see Jo standing at the door, an expression of shocked disbelief in her eyes.

She met his eyes briefly, then ran towards the bed, her face alight with a mix of fear and anger. "Let go! Don't do that," she screamed, grabbing him and attempting to pull him off Malcolm.

Lucas batted her away and removed the pillow to reveal Malcolm's pale face looking calm but completely lifeless. He thought rather numbly that that had been the most difficult thing he had ever had to do in his life.

"You killed him," she exclaimed, "Why did you do that," she whispered in an anguished tone .

"I was looking after him, he might have got better," she said softly. She wasn't initially sure that he would get better but as she spoke she became more and more convinced that, although the chances of Malcolm recovering some movement were not high, he would have been the one to beat the odds.

"He wouldn't have gotten better, he would have stayed like that for ever," Lucas said sharply. He felt exhausted, completely drained.

"He would too and you killed him you bastard," Jo said, her voice with trembling with outrage. "You're just – you're such an awful, awful man, I don't even know what to call you. If I'd known who you really were there was no way I'd ever have slept with you. You're not the person I thought you were. And to think Malcolm thought you were his friend!"

Lucas took in a deep breath and tried to control his temper, to set aside his feelings at her insult to his character and to make her understand the situation.

He gripped her arm gently, "Malcolm wasn't getting better. This way was best for him. To let him go with some dignity."

He didn't know why he even bothered, for all the attention she gave his words. She hastily brushed his arm off. She was far too wound up and was working herself into what was clearly a highly emotional state.

"He would have gotten better. I know he would. You're nothing but a stupid, cold hearted murderer. That's what they taught you in Russia, how to be cold and hard and that's all you know. I don't know what I ever saw in you. If I had any idea who you really were there's no way last night would have happened," she said, her eyes alight with anger.

"I suppose you much prefer your lawyer then?" Lucas replied coolly, his expression hardening.

"Yes I do," Jo snapped. "I don't care what you think of him – at least he's not a cold blooded killer. I can't believe I let ever let you touch me with your filthy murdering hands. Last night was such a mistake."

Lucas had quite a temper when provoked and her final comment pushed him too far. "It wasn't a mistake," he said sharply, his face dark with anger, "it was completely right and something that we should have done a long time ago."

He continued harshly, "And there's no point acting like some kind of stuck up virgin, princess – we both know you're not qualified to play that part."

Lucas' training had taught him how to identify people's weakness and exploit them and he recognized that he was doing that right now. However, almost as soon as the words came out of his mouth, he knew that he'd more than crossed the line, but he was still smarting from her words and was too angry to apologise.

Jo looked at him shocked. Was he talking about Boscard? Was he trying to use that against her?

She stared at him for a moment, then turned on her heel and fled from the room, slamming the door behind her.


	23. Chapter 23

When she reached her room Jo threw herself on to the bed, and curled herself into a ball, her body still shaking from the shock of her previous encounter. After a few minutes she sat up again, her nose wrinkled in disgust. She smelt of Lucas. His aftershave and the sweat from his body after last night. This morning she hadn't noticed – now it was all she could think of. She wondered how it was that he still even had aftershave, then remembered that he had carried the same satchel with him ever since they had left the grid, so must have kept it in there.

The only thing that consumed her mind was the need to wash it away – to remove any trace of him from her. A few seconds later she ran down the spiral staircase towards the well, tossing the bucket down into it and beginning to pull the rope back up.

Half an hour later she was finally clean again and thankfully free of any reminder of Lucas. After retying her hair once more and pulling her dress back on she slid silently out the bathroom door and headed for Malcolm's room. She sincerely hoped that she wouldn't find Lucas there.

She was relieved to find she didn't, only Malcolm's pale face and unnaturally still body. She wondered what had possessed Lucas to hurt Malcolm like that – to hurt her friend who had always been there to offer the rest of the team so much quiet support and comfort. Perhaps Lucas had lost his respect for the value of life from his time in prison. Whatever it was it meant that she couldn't stand to even be in the same room as him any more. He was harsh, and cold and cruel and the only way she could remain here now was if she was to stay away from him. In fact, she wasn't even sure if she was safe here with him. Had he killed Malcolm because he was a burden and therefore expendible or had his time in prison made him a monster – a man with an evil soul who hid behind a veneer of charm and respectability. She had heard of such men before. And either way what would happen to her? He could turn on her at any time or else so easily become expendable in his eyes.

She put her thoughts aside and stepped forward to pick up a book from Malcolm's bedside table and turn it over in her hands. Malcolm had always loved to read. After a moment she put it down and impulsively took Malcolm's wrinkled palm in her youthful one and clasped it firmly. She recalled how she and Malcolm had played a little game during quiet periods on the grid when no one else was around. He would take out one of his work's of Shakespeare or another of the other novels he kept by his desk and close his eyes and pick a page at random. He would read out a quote to her and then wait with an air of suspense for her to guess which character had said it.

She thought sadly that now Malcolm was dead it would fall to her to be the one to shut her eyes and place her finger on a page and predict who might have said the words revealed beneath. And the game would now have to be played in complete silence and alone.

Though the chair began to press uncomfortably into her back and her shoulders became stiff Jo stayed there like that - her hand still clutching Malcolm's on her lap until the rain no longer beat down on the windowpane and the room became strangely quiet - then finally rested her head wearily on the bed as the tears began to roll silently down her face.


	24. Chapter 24

**Day Nine: 10:41am**

Jo didn't see Lucas again that morning until some hours later. After she had finished sitting with Malcolm she decided to gather some white roses to sit by his bedside so that he wouldn't be forgotten once he was gone.

Once she got outside the castle gate she hurried towards the castle entrance where the miniature roses grew up the inner walls, twining with the vines as they had done for hundreds of years.

Lucas had been searching for tools inside one of the outer buildings when he saw Jo leave the castle and move quickly towards the castle gates. In her hands she carried a basket. He paused to wonder briefly what she was up to when a worrying thought struck him.

"Jo," he yelled, "where are you going?"

She ignored him and continued hurrying towards the gates. Lucas ran towards her.

"Jo – stop. Don't leave the castle," he panted.

She ignored him and continued to walk towards the gates. Her face had a peculiarly determined set to it.

"I said - don't leave the castle," he said once again, following her and grabbing her arm to stop her in her tracks.

"I wasn't –" she started, trying to shake him off. His grip was firm.

She was old enough to make her own mind up. Who did he think he was to always be telling her what to do?

He interrupted her, "I know things aren't great between us right now, but where you are now is a lot safer than you would be outside. It's dangerous out there and probably getting more so by the minute. You can't leave here by yourself. Do you understand me?"

She said nothing. She had no intention of leaving the castle and knew that it was dangerous but she didn't want to give him the satisfaction of thinking that she agreed with him. Irritation flickered across his face and he repeated himself again, "Do you understand me?" This time his grip tightened and he shook her by the shoulders as he said the words. His looked cross and he was so tall that he could be quite intimating when he was angry.

"Let go of me," she replied, pushing him away from her, "I wasn't trying to leave the castle but it's not for you to tell me what I can and can't do anyway. I can make my own decisions and I'm not a fool."

"I didn't say you were a fool but sometimes you can underestimate the risks we face is all and I don't want you going outside. It's too dangerous," he said shortly.

"I don't need your advice and I don't want your concern. And in my opinion you would do better to show a little less regard for my welfare and a little more for Malcolm's," she added bitterly.

"Jo," Lucas started, trying to control his temper, "you don't understand the situation. You're wrong to say that I didn't care for Malcolm. He was my friend and I did what I thought was best for him. I do care about him and I care about you too - although I know you have me pegged as the devil incarnate at the moment," he finished sharply.

Jo looked at him briefly, her eyes flashing with anger, "stop pretending that you care about how I feel. You don't care about me, you don't care about Malcolm or anyone but yourself. And don't talk to me any more," she added glaring at him. "I can't stand your insincerity."

She turned away from him and ran towards the castle, deciding she would do her best to avoid Lucas in the future for both their sakes. What irritated her even more than their encounter was the fact that he had prevented her from picking the roses and now she have to wait until he had left and go out once more for them so she could make Malcolm's room as beautiful as she wanted to make it to keep his memory alive.

Lucas watched her move off into the distance then kicked the wall in frustration and swore loudly, not caring that his words were wholly out of place in such a tranquil setting.


	25. Chapter 25

**Day Eleven: 8:23am**

In the two days since Malcolm's death, Jo could count on one hand the number of words she had said to Lucas.

On the morning of the third day she woke later than usual, but still felt excessively tired. She sat up and moved to get out of bed, then hastily stopped in her tracks. Her head was spinning and her body felt so unbearably heavy. After a few seconds she put her head back down on the pillow and decided to stay there for a little while longer until she was feeling better.

**

She didn't wake again until the evening, and when she did Lucas was sitting by her bed, looking at her with a slightly amused expression when she opened her eyes. She tried to get them to focus properly on his face.

"Evening," he greeted her.

She looked at him, confused for a moment, "it's not evening."

He glanced at his watch, "I make it 6:49pm. I think you'll find that nine out of ten citizens of this fair country would agree that is usually considered to be evening."

"Oh," Jo replied, looking mildly surprised, "I didn't realize it was so late. I should get up," she started, until a combination of Lucas putting his hand on her arm to stop her form moving and a bout of sudden dizziness put a stop to that idea.

'I think not," Lucas replied firmly. "The best place for you right now is in bed."

She lay back down. After a little while the dizziness passed, but then she became uncomfortably aware of the fact that Lucas was sitting in a position that was really very close to her. And worse still her body was damp with perspiration. She had only a thin petticoat she had found and washed in one of the castle rooms and a pair of knickers beneath it and the petticoat was almost transparent and was clinging to her in a most revealing way. She hastily pulled at the sheet she vaguely remembered casting aside thinking it was making her far too hot, and brought it up to cover her.

"How are you feeling now?" Lucas enquired, noting that her temperature had given her cheeks a rosy blush, and her eyes a slightly glassy look, making her appearance look even more doll like than usual.

"Tired. And a little hot," she replied.

Lucas nodded, "you seem to have a bit of a fever. I've been trying to keep you cool by sponging you down."

"Sponging me down?" Jo murmured, not liking where the conversation appeared to be going.

"Yes well, you kept muttering that you were too hot, and I was trying to keep you cool."

"Sponging me down with my clothes on you mean?" she repeated hopefully,

"Well, yes with your little getup on, though you did get rather tangled at times and your present outfit doesn't really leave much to the imagination," he replied, watching her with an amused expression.

She looked at him crossly, then looked down blushing, "You are so not a gentleman, Lucas North."

"Ah, well there," he said with a charming smile, "I would have to disagree with you – after all haven't I been taking excellent care of you today? And all with no thanks or appreciation. And I didn't think you'd be too concerned with false modesty seeing as you must remember I've seen it all before," he replied, still looking like he wanted to laugh.

At something that was not amusing to her.

"Well, you're not likely to see it again," she muttered crossly, well aware of the fact that she ought to be grateful to him but his shameless teasing was making it difficult to be gracious.

She could see him smile at her comment and then he turned away and murmured, "I beg to differ," very softly to himself – so softly in fact that she wasn't sure whether she had misheard him.

Though she still didn't feel well she was in control of her senses enough to wonder whether Lucas could possibly be any more irritating. Or insufferably arrogant. That was, she thought, if she had heard him correctly. Which she wasn't sure she had.

Lucas continued with a grin, "anyway you could do worse than my care - for example I could have followed the advice of Doctor Rupert Fitzherbert, Esquire, and carried out his prescribed cure for a bout of fever which involved repeatedly immersing the patient in ice cold water and, of course, the rudimentary course of leeches. He was extremely learned for an eighteenth century physician, you know."

"No," Jo replied hastily, "no leeches," her eyes widening in fear at the thought of those evil slimy little creatures being attached to her body like limpets and slowly sucking away her blood until there was nothing of left of her except for a pale shell.

Lucas smiled and leaned forward to whisper softly in her ear, "don't worry, I wouldn't let anyone leech you sweetheart."

Jo nodded, relieved and noticed that when she moved her head it had begun to ache once more. And her throat was sore and now her eyelids were heavy again. She leaned back and rested her head against the pillow and Lucas raised a glass of water to her lips and gave her little sips of it which helped to ease the burning sensation in her throat. After she had finished it she was finally allowed to give in to the tiredness which had overwhelmed her and close her eyes and drift off to sleep.

**


	26. Chapter 26

**

**Day Thirteen: 12:04pm**

As she sat in her bedroom idly thumbing through an illustrated guide to the castle she had found in one of the rooms Jo wondered what Lucas was doing with himself now. Today she was pleased to find that she was once again feeling herself again. Yesterday, she had woken up feeling noticeably better than the day before but with strange memories of little black sucking insects chasing her in her head. It had all been rather disturbing and she wasn't sure why she would have such unpleasant dreams.

She had been well enough to get up and potter around the hall quietly for a good part of yesterday. But she had still had a sore throat and was very tired, and had experienced a couple of bouts of dizziness and sudden chills. Which she hadn't told Lucas about because she was quite sure he would insist that she go back to bed and she thought she was quite likely to die of boredom given that she had nothing whatsoever to do there.

Yesterday had been a sad day too as they had buried Malcolm. Although perhaps it was not quite correct to say "they" had done it. Lucas had dug the grave and placed Malcolm's body in it. Without the numerous people who usually assisted at funerals it was a curiously physical operation, neither quiet or discreet, as she could hear Lucas' breathing become harder the further down he dug and see the sweat beading on his forehead. He had rolled up his sleeves and she could see the muscles in his arms flexing with the effort of it. She remembered what it had felt like to have Lucas' arms around her. They had been strong and sinewy and it had been comforting to rest inside them. But that was over now – definitely over. There would be no more of that anymore.

She had stood to the side, watching silently. She didn't offer to help, which was unusual for her. That would have seemed to make her a collaborator in Malcolm's murder and she couldn't stomach that thought. And Lucas would probably have refused anyway because of her illness.

When he had finished Lucas stepped away from the grave and stood opposite her. "Did you want to say anything?," he asked, after a moment, observing the way she clutched a piece of paper in her hands.

Jo looked down, avoiding his eyes, and began a little awkwardly, "I just wrote down a couple of things Malcolm taught me which I thought I would read out so that he would know I haven't forgotten them."

She took in a breath and reminded herself that she was not to cry now. She had done that already when she had sat with Malcolm. And it was important not to cry in front of Lucas.

"Firstly, Malcolm always says that it is fault of every Englishman to know that you can never rely on the weather and yet it is in our national character to assume that today will be an exception. Therefore we must always be prepared for the worst. That," said Jo pausing, "was important advice for carrying out field work. Damp shoe prints on carpet have the potential to ruin many an undercover operation so you must always take a spare."

"Another thing I learned from Malcolm is that technology is like a good book – it will work for you but you have to give it the proper attention and it doesn't do to try to take shortcuts to get to the end."

"Malcolm knew so many interesting things and I am very lucky that he shared some of his knowledge with me. Now I know the capitals of almost every country now and I learned so much about the history of this country. Like for example that the city of London was the capital of England in Roman times and was called Londinium. And that six of the traditional seven gates in the old walls which surrounded the city are of Roman origin. These were Ludgate, Newgate, Aldersgate, Cripplegate, Bishopsgate and Aldgate. The last one – Moorgate is from medieval times."

"And he taught me other things as well. Like how to recognize when it is best to stay away from Harry's office. You can tell this by a little twitch on the left side of his face and then gradually his face starts getting more and more beetroot coloured. But by the time that happens its already too late so you have to know to look for the twitch – that is," she amended, "unless you're Ruth. In which case it's probably still safe to enter."

"And when I first joined he taught he how to tell when Zaf was teasing – which was pretty much whenever he opened his mouth and how to tell when Ros was being sarcastic, and that the fact that her lips were moving was usually a clue and explained what Colin's techno-babble meant when I didn't have a clue. And he also pointed out gently at one point that Adam was a married man which saved me from embarrassing myself even more than I had already done."

She looked up at him and finished abruptly, "I'll miss him. That's all really," then added, "I don't have a poem for him though," biting her lip.

Lucas nodded. "Malcolm would be proud that you remembered the things he taught you. And perhaps I can help with the poem."

"It's one that Malcolm loved and he used to say to me often when I first joined the Grid. I wasn't very old then - 24, about the same age you were when you first joined."

Lucas looked down at the ground and began in a low voice,

_If you can keep your head when all about you  
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;  
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,  
But make allowance for their doubting too;  
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,  
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,  
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,  
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;_

_If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;  
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;  
If you can meet with triumph and disaster  
And treat those two imposters just the same;  
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken  
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,  
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,  
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;_

_If you can make one heap of all your winnings  
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,  
And lose, and start again at your beginnings  
And never breath a word about your loss;  
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew  
To serve your turn long after they are gone,  
And so hold on when there is nothing in you  
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";_

_If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,  
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;  
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;  
If all men count with you, but none too much;  
If you can fill the unforgiving minute  
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -  
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,  
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son. _

Lucas paused for a few seconds then added, "rest in peace Malcolm," and fell silent.

By the time he had finished, Jo was sniffing quietly to herself and fighting a battle to stop her eyes from watering. She did win it after a minute or two and she was pleased that Lucas hadn't even appeared to notice her struggle, so preoccupied did he seem to be.

After they had returned inside later than evening Lucas had tried to reach out to her by touching her shoulder and asking her softly how she felt. She had responded by turning on some much needed frostiness. It had been quite easy as she had seen Ros do it many a time and it was simple enough to copy her mannerisms and voice in the hope that that would dissuade him from trying that again. He might be used to finding his charms irresistable to other women but she was quite capable of ignoring them. She was a trained MI5 officer after all, not some lovesick schoolgirl. It seemed to have been effective though he didn't really look frightened, just a bit put out and kind of annoyed.

But fortunately yesterday was over and she was now feeling quite well.

With Lucas she seemed to have reached a rather uneasy truce that morning. She could recall that he had sat by her side when she had been ill and vaguely remembered that he might have gotten her a glass of water which had been cool to drink but she couldn't really recall much else, except that it had been rather comforting to think that Lucas was there somewhere if she needed him. Which of course she didn't she added to herself, now that she was better.

They'd said a little to each other at meals yesterday and he'd insisted on her taking it easy and had made her something to eat. It was difficult to remain cross with him when he kept doing things like that. But she hadn't forgiven him for hurting Malcolm either – in fact she wasn't sure she ever would. So they seemed to have reached a stalemate. Jo wasn't rude to him. It wasn't really in her nature to be so she was polite enough, but distant.

The problem was she didn't trust him any more and she must never allow him to become close to her again, like he had been before. That was when the trouble would start. Because Lucas might have an amiable side he was showing now but he also had that other side – the side she didn't want to see again but that Malcolm had known.

She was startled from her thoughts by the sound of a knock on the door, and hastily got up to open it.

Lucas was standing in the doorway and met her eyes gravely, "I've had a message from Jim. He wants me to meet him in Reading. He has a job for me."

**


	27. Chapter 27

**Day Sixteen: 3:29pm **

It had taken Lucas three days to meet up with Jim just outside Reading.

Lucas had been shocked to see how quickly the towns and cities has lost their veneer of civilization and had become festering magnates for crime. Inside them people roamed the streets like scavengers looking for food, water and supplies. Most people had left the population centres by now, unable to find enough sustenance to keep them going and the countryside was also increasingly dangerous.

Many of the faces Lucas encountered on his journey were hungry, dirty and desperate and he couldn't even recall the number of times he had drawn his gun from where it rested inside his jacket He had encountered a number of bodies along the way, and thought bitterly of Robert's lining his pockets with well intentioned donations from children and pensioners which were supposed to help keep victims such as these alive.

Inside his satchel he carried two bottles of water which he had managed to refill in streams along the way and a stash of food he had taken from the castle. He had guarded these with his life and so far he had survived even in this environment where life was cheap.

He met Jim inside St Mary's Church in a little village some ten miles from Reading. The building was deserted and there Jim updated him on the situation and unveiled his plan.

He revealed that he and two of his colleagues at Six had been secretly planning to assassinate General Roberts and were putting in place plans to smooth the way for the restoration of democracy to the nation.

Jim informed him that two days ago, the first tanker of oil had arrived in the country. The next day a further tanker had arrived and regular shipments could be expected to resume once more within the next few days. The supply would be arriving as a dribble rather than a flood and would supply only a tiny part of the populace but it opened up endless options to whoever controlled it. Oil meant the ability to move people, to move supplies. It meant power.

Jim went on to say that from the two ships, forty tanker trucks had been loaded with oil and had left the Southampton Docks. With a little assistance from some trusted supporters Jim and his colleagues had managed to divert two of the tankers under the cover of darkness and they were now hidden in a warehouse some fifty miles from their point of origin.

He went on to say that they had made contact with the Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, who was now the highest ranking Police Officer within the greater London area and were working with him to try to reassemble the Police force as best they could without drawing attention to their actions.

"In a couple of days they'll start looking for civilians recruits to fill up the holes in the force too," Jim added.

Lucas frowned.

"Don't worry they'll be vetted," Jim added hurriedly. "Honest civilians – not General Robert's type."

Lucas nodded. If that was Jim's opinion he would trust it – he knew enough people to be in the know if anything untoward was being planned.

"Now that we have fuel and some form of alternative control to the military," Jim commented with satisfaction, "the time is ripe to take Roberts out."

"He needs to go and you're right to make preparations for the transition," Lucas agreed.

Jim nodded and then leaned forward, preparing to take Lucas into his confidence. "There's something else you should know that Roberts has been keeping from the rest of the country. It's quite shocking too."

"Six days ago while they were eating breakfast two members of her majesty's household burst into the dining room at Balmoral where the Queen and her husband were eating breakfast and shot them both at close range. Four minutes later Prince Charles was assassinated by an unknown sniper as he was taking a morning stroll at one of his country estates. The nation is presently without a reigning monarch."

Lucas spat angrily, "Robert's work I presume."

Jim nodded soberly, "Almost undoubtedly. He will have placed some of his people inside the Royal Household."

"That man is determined to remove every vestige of constitutional democracy present in this country," Lucas added with disgust. "I shudder to think what he will try to do next. Is William safe?"

Jim nodded. "Once we found out what had happened we moved the boys into hiding. He is now, rather appropriately, tucked away deep in northern Wales, along with his brother. They're under orders not to leave the house and are virtually under house arrest under the watchful gaze of a rather staunch middle aged monarchist couple. I imagine they're finding it a trifle dull," he added with a smile.

"Dull but safe," Lucas replied shortly. "What's the plan?"

"Well, first off we discreetly consulted a constitutional law expert at Oxford to find out what we needed to do. Basically we need to get William into England and as soon as Robert's dealt with he can assume his duties as King – the official coronation can wait for a few weeks and then the next most senior MP will assume the duties of the Prime Minister until the country is stable enough to hold an election. Parliament will be reconvened and we'll get the new PM to revoke the special measures the Prime Minister granted to the army. He will instead grant some very limited additional powers to the Police to assist them to resolve the situation but they will be reporting closely to Parliament."

Lucas interrupted, "What about the Army? Do they even exist anymore?"

"Yes," Jim nodded gravely, "from what I've heard they have been the best provisioned in the whole country – Roberts recognized the need for their continued support and has kept them well fed."

"They're going to be trouble," Lucas said grimly.

"Ahh," Jim replied with a smile. "Yes – they do pose a problem because of their loyalty to Roberts. I've given that some thought too. Once William and Harry are back in the country I plan to arrange for them to tour the various divisions with the PM in tow to gain support for the new government. Both William and Harry are military men and are enormously popular with the troops. And although William's young, he's a sensible lad and I don't think there's any danger of the power going to his head like it did in Roberts' case."

Lucas nodded in agreement with Jim's proposal. "Sounds like it could work."

Jim's face became serious once more and he changed the subject abruptly, "Lucas, I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news but we know what happened to Harry and it isn't good news I'm afraid."

Lucas watched him warily, "go on," he replied cautiously.

"Harry's been found, with the other members of the JIC. In the woods outside High Wycombe. They'd been shot dead all of them and buried in the woods together in a mass grave. We're certain it was the work of Roberts and his men."

Lucas swore loudly then lapsed into stunned silence. Roberts had killed fifteen of the most senior politicians and decision makers in Britain. The man was a mass murderer – a possible Hitler in the making.

"And Ros?" Lucas added hesitantly, almost afraid to ask.

"We have reason to believe she survived the tsunami but was later taken out separately on Robert's orders also."

The colour had drained from Lucas' face and he put his head in his hands. After a minute he asked, "How reliable is your intelligence?"

"Very," Jim responded quietly.

"How many others has Roberts got rid of?"

"Lots," Jim replied, shaking his head with disgust, "a number of senior MPs especially Cabinet Ministers – only the Ministers of Transport and Education are left and they're not of the caliber needed to head the government."

"Christ," Lucas exclaimed, stunned.

"So what do you want me to do?" he asked.

"We want you to help us kill him," Jim replied simply, and smiled.


	28. Chapter 28

Three hours later Lucas had found himself sitting on a park bench beside Jim and his colleague. Mohammed Kahil was another MI6 officer, who had been observing Roberts for a number of days. Jim had asked Mohammed to brief them both on the situation. Mohammed had gotten out a notebook and flipped through the pages until he reached his notes.

"Alexander Roberts," he began to read, "Mid fifties. Twenty five years service in the military. Knows everything there is to know about the military and everyone worth knowing in the military and government. Highly intelligent and cunning. An outstanding military tactician. He's married to his wife Jenny and has two daughters and one son. All teenagers. Roberts is currently residing with his supporters at Parklands estate some ten miles outside of Winchester. With him he has five other men and an armed guard from the twelfth division of some twenty men. The estate is not heavily defended but there are four guards stationed on the front entrance and a couple keeping watch around the grounds. The best point of entry to the property is via the woods adjacent to the eastern side of the property. Roberts has been taking a daily stroll in the grounds most afternoons and makes trips off the property every couple of days to visit the nearby camp or the local town. He and his supporters still have petrol of course. There are a further 200 troops stationed some five miles away."

Jim nodded as Mohammed paused, encouraging him to continue.

"Of Robert's supporters only two are potentially troublesome in my assessment," Mohammed added.

"The first is Major Andrew McNeil, who has been placed in charge of General Robert's armed guard. In his forties, an experienced military man. Not overly intelligent but vicious and highly trained. And fiercely loyal to Roberts. I would characterize McNeil as a fox terrier who likes a scrap. He will need to be neutralized otherwise he could potentially mount an attack once he realizes Robert's has been taken out."

"The other is Peter De Vries. South African – late 30s. No military training, but he's General Robert's PR man. He's worked for the army for three years and he's a master of spin. He's the one who suggested shutting down the media and has been advising Roberts on all sorts of things. He's a wealthy man – not in his own right but by marriage. His wife is South African too and a right piece of work. Word is he can't stand her but can't leave her because then he'll lose everything. He's known to be something of a serial philanderer. Anyway, he's dangerous because he's reported to be a brilliant speaker and could easily incite the army into seeking vengeance for Robert's assassination. We need to take him out."

Lucas had been listening to the briefing intently. "So we're looking at a three pronged attack."

Mohammed nodded.

"We'll need support to deal with the house guard and the troops nearby," Lucas added.

Jim nodded. "The Police are re-grouping presently. Once they have enough numbers we'll be ready to take on Roberts. I've told them we need them to station themselves near to each of the twelve military camps on British soil and to be ready to put down any trouble from the Army once this goes down."

He turned to Mohammed, "any word on what kind of numbers the Police have now?"

"600," Mohammed replied.

"Not enough," Jim replied, frowning. "The Army has 2,300 men here, thankfully a lot are stationed overseas. We need at least 2,000 police – anything less is too risky. How long did they say it would take to get those kind of numbers?"

"Barbara says a week."

Barbara Templeton was another MI6 officer with thirty years experience at the Foreign Office and MI6 that Jim and Mohammed had been working with on this operation. She was presently liaising with the Police.

Lucas looked at Mohammed, "So you've been watching them – what's the best way to get to them?"

"General Roberts - in my view by sniper, during one of his walks ideally. McNeil I think should be made to "disappear" at around the same time. De Vries' weakness is women so it should be quite easy to lure him in and then put something in his drink or his food, we just need the right type of girl for that."

"Have we got weapons for the op?" Lucas asked.

"Yes – quite a few. How's your accuracy?" Jim asked.

Lucas looked up at him and met his eye, "good," he replied briefly.

"The other officer you had with you in the city - where is she now?" Jim asked curiously.

"About forty miles from here," Lucas replied.

"And she's a clever girl?" Jim asked, wanting confirmation that his impression of her from their brief meeting was correct.

"Yeah, she's pretty smart," Lucas answered, not entirely comfortable with where the conversation appeared to be heading.

"How long has she worked for Five then?" Jim asked, trying to ascertain whether she could be useful to them.

Lucas thought about it. "Three or four years."

He nodded, "Good. So she's got a bit of experience then. I think she'd our best bet to get to De Vries." He turned to Mohammed and added for his benefit, "I expect she'd tick all the boxes as far as De Vries was concerned. Pretty. Blonde. Twentysomething. Not his wife - that sort of thing."

"What precisely did you have in mind?" Lucas asked warily.

"We just need someone to lure him in then we can place something in his drink or food to finish him off nice and quiet like. Should be pretty straightforward – I don't even think things need to get too frisky," he said nonchalatenlty.

"She'll need some backup," Lucas replied, still not sure that he approved of the idea.

"We don't have CCTV but we can bug them and we have binoculars. But we can't go barging in just for anything, mind, otherwise we'll be blown. She needs to be able to handle herself," he paused, "is there some kind of problem? You're worried she's not competent enough for this?"

Lucas shook his head sharply, irritated that he couldn't in all fairness agree with Jim though he wanted to. "No, she is competent. I just don't want her sent in unless we can get her out if things get – difficult. That's all."

Mohammed had been watching this conversation silently and was starting to draw his own conclusions about why Lucas was concerned about De Vries getting too familiar with the young lady concerned. In their line of business it was fairly run of the mill stuff for female agents to be exposed to a little amorous attention in the line of duty and Lucas' reluctance to go along with the idea seemed somewhat odd.

"We can if things get too tricky. But this is an important op as you'll be aware," Jim replied shortly. "We don't want to stuff things up. Anyway, that's enough talk for now. Lucas I want you to go and get the girl and then we'll regroup in a couple of days time. How long will it take you to pick her up and head back to Winchester?" Jim asked.

"Five days maybe."

"Fine," Jim replied. "We can't do this thing until the Police have enough numbers anyway which is at least a week away. We'll meet at the Holy Trinity graveyard in Winchester. We'll be there in the morning at 10 and again at 4 each afternoon from Tuesday onwards. We'll keep watching Roberts in the meantime. See you in Winchester," Jim finished abruptly, getting up and waiting for Mohammed to do the same then striding off towards the exit to the park, leaving Lucas to watch their figures as they disappeared into the distance.


	29. Chapter 29

_There is a chapter previous to this also which you might not have read yet._

Lucas had been on the road since Thursday and after two days of walking he was both weary and hungry. The only thing keeping him going at the moment was the thought of arriving at the castle - hopefully later this evening - and being able to finally find something decent to eat and then being able to lie down and relax by the fire. In his mind the image of the castle took on the likeness of an oasis in the midst of a desert of despair. At the castle there was food, and water and comfort and warmth. And Jo too. Perhaps when he got home this evening she would be sitting by the fire quietly reading a book, her hair glowing golden by the light of the flames. And maybe this time he would be lucky and find that she didn't turn away from him when he touched her as she had done last time but perhaps might instead ask how his journey had been and then rest her hand on his arm like she was pleased to see him. He thought that might make his tiredness disappear and make the past two days seem suddenly worthwhile.

He put his head down to shelter himself against the chilling wind that blew from the north and concentrated his attention on continuing to put one foot in front of the other, thinking to himself as he did so that he only needed to keep going a few more hours until he would be home.

**

Inside the castle grounds Jo was entertaining herself by picking apples and peaches in the orchard. In the autumntime fruit was plentiful and there were was far more in the orchard than one person could possibly consume themselves. She had conceived a plan to collect some of the fruit and preserve it for the winter when supplies might be low. She was no expert on the art of preserving but figured there couldn't be that much to it, surely. It was simply a matter of boiling the fruit and adding sugar surely? How difficult could that be?

After half an hour in the orchard she stepped down from the ladder she had found in one of the sheds and looked at her pile of fruit with quiet satisfaction. There must be at least ten jars worth of fruit there and tomorrow she would begin bottling it. But for now, she thought, noting that the light was beginning to fade, it was time to head indoors.

In the kitchen she busied herself by piling the fruit on the table as she hummed to herself. When she turned around to look for a bowl she was pleased to see her new friend sitting on the floor waiting impatiently for his dinner. 'Frisky' as she liked to call him was a small black cat who she had found living in one of the castle stables four days ago. At first she had wondered how he had survived inside the castle without feeding but then she had seen him beside the pond one day, watching intently as the fish swam bath and forth and then seem how, quick as flash he had scooped his paw into the water and brought it back out with a fish. Frisky was clever, there was no doubt about that. She had discovered to her delight that he was also quite friendly and could be enticed out of the stables by the promise of a few choice treats. For the past two days he had been keeping her company inside the castle and helped to make it slightly less intimidating to live in by herself.

**

Outside the castle walls as dusk fell two figures crept closer to the moat that surrounded the structure.

"You say you reckon there's food inside there," one of them whispered.

"I don't reckon, I know it," the other replied sharply. "They used to get tourists in there until right up until the tsunami hit. There was a café and everything. I bet there's still some pickings in there – we just need to get inside."

"Looks like it'll be tricky to get over them walls though."

"Nah – I reckon I'm up for it," came the reply. "You can wait here and I'll have a go. Just see if I can't do it."

"Alright," the other nodded, "go on then, I'm watching. We ain't got nothing to lose."


	30. Chapter 30

The second time Lucas climbed the castle walls proved to be considerably more difficult than the first. This time he had no rope and it was also quite dark. He was also very tired. But he managed it nevertheless.

Once he was inside the castle he lit a candle and began to search for Jo. He was a little disappointed to find she wasn't by the fire as he'd imagined she might be but then he supposed it was late and she must be in bed. He made his way to the northern end of the castle where her bedroom was and knocked softly on the door. There was no response. He knocked again more loudly, and waited for a minute or two, then pushed the door open and entered.

There was no one inside. He paused for a minute and wondered where she might have gone.

He began to tour through the northern wing of the castle, opening the doors of each room as he went along, but once again finding no one inside. After he had spent ten minutes searching for her with no luck he began to feel increasingly concerned about her welfare and picked up the pace of his tour until he was running from room to room, somehow finding the energy to keep going, despite his overwhelming exhaustion.

**

Several doors down he finally found her, no where near where he had expected her to be. She was lying on a large four poster bed, still wearing a day dress and cardigan, sleeping peacefully, a book clutched in her left hand, while a small black cat slept beside her. He watched her for a few moments then moved to sit at the base of the bed. From the other side of the bed the cat raised his head and narrowed his green eyes, regarding this new intruder with suspicion. Lucas considered for a couple of moments whether he ought to wake Jo before deciding against it. As he got up to leave the room, the cat suddenly lept from the bed with a plaintive meow than sounded very much like a request to be fed. Jo turned slightly and sighed in her sleep then after a moment opened her eyes and stared at him sleepily.

"Evening," Lucas said in a low voice. She watched him for a few seconds, still looking slightly dazed by his sudden reappearance.

"You know it is customary to reply to a greeting in some form or other. Don't you have anything to say to me?" Lucas asked after a moment, sounding amused.

"Sorry," she said, blinking. "What did Jim want?"

Lucas sighed. "He needs our help to get rid of Roberts. And friends. It's a long story."

"Oh," said Jo, "you look tired – do you want to sit down? I made some bread today too – it's in the kitchen if you'd like something to eat. Oh – and we have visitors too by the way."

"Visitors," Lucas repeated, slightly thrown by the casual way she had dropped that in to the conversation.

"Yes," Jo replied hesitantly, thinking Lucas probably wouldn't like what she had to say, "Lex and Sal are their names. He got in to the castle the same way you did the first time. I was a little bit surprised at first when he turned up in the kitchen, specially seeing he was dressed like a vagrant and dripping wet. But they stayed for dinner and it turns out they're actually quite decent people and he's very funny as well. He tells some very entertaining stories about what goes on at some football matches and sort of dirty jokes about politicians but quite clever and political at the same time and one of them involved the home secretary and what he got up to at one of the conferences in Thailand where you know they have lady entertainers but not all of them are _actually_ ladies if you know what I mean –"

"And you didn't consider that they might be dangerous?," Lucas interrupted sharply.

"Yes, of course I did Lucas – at first anyway. When he arrived I was thinking about where I left the broom in case I needed to clock him one but all he asked for was something to eat and I thought well, I really don't want to have to kill him just over a bit of bread and soup – I mean that would be a bit silly really, don't you think, even in times like these?"

"Yes, I suppose it would," Lucas had to agree reluctantly, still suspicious about their "visitors" and what this might mean. "So where are they now?" he asked abruptly.

"In one of the bedrooms," Jo replied. "Did you want to meet them?"

"I rather think I had better," Lucas answered quickly.

_Kind of half way through this part_.

_Jo! – I leave you unsupervised for a couple of minutes and look at the kind of dialogue you come up with – chattering away about Thai ladyboys and such like. Sigh. _


	31. Chapter 31

Lex and Sal proved to be a bit rough around the edges, but quite decent people, Lucas had to admit. And Lex was rather entertaining – he only spent ten minutes in his company but left the room laughing loudly.

When Lucas emerged from their room, Jo gave him a little look, but elected to say nothing.

"I believe you were dying to tell me that you told me so," Lucas said brusquely.

"No," she shook her head vigorously, "it's not really my style," then paused and added pointedly, "more like yours." She couldn't resist smiling to herself.

Lucas scowled at her briefly, failing to see anything amusing about her comment.

Jo composed herself and decided that it would be diplomatic to change the subject. "So what's the plan with Roberts?" she asked curiously when they reached the parlour.

Lucas sighed. "Let me just get something to eat and drink and I'll explain."

Jo nodded and waited until Lucas had collected some bread from the kitchen, shut the door, then settled himself back into the chair again. She noticed he had also picked up one of the bottles of wine from the cellar and poured himself a glass.

Once he had seated himself, Jo looked at him expectantly.

Taking in a tired breath, he went on to explain the plan to deal with Roberts and McNeil. Jo listened attentively, and asked a few pertinent questions along the way.

When Lucas had finished talking, he paused and added that there was a third target that needed to be taken out by the name of Peter De Vries and that Jim wanted Jo to help with that operation.

"Ok," she replied nodding, "I'm happy to help – what does he want me to do?"

"Well," Lucas replied, sounding irritable, "De Vries has a bit of a thing for the ladies so Jim wants you to be the one to lure him in and then place something in his drink or in his food. We'll be watching you."

Jo considered this for a moment and replied hesitantly, "ok then. When's the op?"

"It's at least five days away – we have to wait until the army is in position near to the existing military camps. We'll need to leave for Winchester tomorrow though – that's near to where Roberts is stationed."

Lucas reached forward and poured himself another drink, considering whether he ought to tell her about Harry and Ros but he didn't have the heart to at the moment. Jo would be devastated by the news and he was already exhausted.

After a few minutes he had finished his glass and he saw her move to get up to leave the room. On an impulse, which he might have resisted if it weren't for the drink and the sense of despair thinking about Harry and Ros had brought on, Lucas quickly got to his feet and did what he'd wanted to do all evening. And that was to go to her and kiss her – not softly or sweetly, but hard so that his intention couldn't be mistaken.

For the first few seconds she found it hard to resist the urge to kiss him back, but after a moment she remembered with a start that he was a Malcolm killer and had betrayed both her and Malcolm. She pushed him away from her abruptly.

"Don't – just don't," she whispered, her voice sounding odd and overly emotional, even to her ears, though she had meant it to sound calm and controlled.

It was late and Lucas was tired of her continual rejection of him.

"Don't push me away like that," Lucas said angrily, stepping closer to her so that he stood only a few inches away from her. "You know that there's something between us, however much you try to deny it," he continued harshly, placing his hand on her waist. "We need to fix this. When are you going to let me in?" he demanded,.

"You're wrong," Jo replied, irritably removing his hand from her body and stepping backwards, "there is nothing between us and there never was. And if you can't understand why I don't want you near maybe you should give some thought to your own actions," she added sharply, then turned and hastily left the room.

**

_Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you are having a nice time with your families. I live down under so we have Christmas a day earlier than the rest of you and it is midsummer here and hot here (31 degrees instead of snowy). And I have lots of spending money now as I got some money/ vouchers for presents. Yah!_


	32. Chapter 32

**Day Twenty Two: 1:23pm **

When she had come down for breakfast the next morning Lucas had looked at her blue dress doubtfully. The problem with that outfit, in his opinion, was that it was going to be rather too effective where De Vries was concerned. Jo was too pretty as it was already, and she certainly didn't need to wear something that highlighted the fact that she was a complete knockout in such an obvious way. Though, to be fair to the dress, it wasn't really the problem.

"I'm not sure that dress is suitable," Lucas said abruptly when she made her way to the kitchen.

Jo turned and looked at him for a moment, then replied coolly, "I think the colour is quite nice and it's all perfectly respectable, so I'm not sure what your problem is."

Lucas frowned, then said crossly, "well, you can at least put a coat on then."

"I don't have one," Jo replied evenly. "But I will take my other dress and my cardigan."

Lucas' behavior was odd, but she refused to be ruffled by it.

They had left the castle shortly after breakfast and were on the road by 8am, after a quick farewell to Lex and Sal. Jo had made Sal promise to take good care of Frisky and make sure that he was fed properly and whispered to her confidentially before they had left that he particularly liked to be tickled under his chin, at about the same spot where there was a small white mark on his fur.

It had taken them three days to make their way to Winchester, and there had been a certain degree of tension between them all the way which had made Jo keep her thoughts to herself and Lucas rather irritable at times.

During her time at the castle Jo had found herself increasingly fascinated by the stories about the inhabitants she had found on display inside the rooms. During the walk she amused herself by trying to imagine what their lives were like. Had they been happy or had their sometimes tumultuous stories caused them to become pessimistic and depressed? She wondered whether someone living in the fourteenth century would have thought the same as her or whether their minds were so fundamentally different, and trained along so completely different lines that she would not even have been able to have a conversation with them. She had read that when the Black Death came to the town the castle was located near to, half of the little town had perished from it. Would the people have then placed the same value on human life she did or did they simply become immune to the death and suffering and cease to care anymore? And how did they then carry on in the face of such a catastrophe that left families cut in half, vacant shops littering the towns and cities and so many bodies that she had read they stopped burying them one by one and simply piled them into pits.

Along the way to Winchester, Lucas and Jo had seen plenty of suffering and Jo had not ceased to care about each and every person they encountered who was in difficulty. Though some of them, such as those who had threatened them, she had also felt other emotions towards.

Despite the fact that they had fallen out and didn't talk much there were many times during the journey when she was glad that Lucas was by her side. It was not so much that his presence increased her safety, though it undoubtedly did, but also it made her feel that she was not the only sane survivor in a world that sometimes felt like it had gone mad and altered beyond recognition from everything she had previously known that was safe and familiar.

As they neared the city, Lucas made a mental note that he would need to keep his eyes fixed on the view in front of him and not let them stray so often to the girl beside him who seemed lost in some kind of daydream that resulted in her smiling to herself at times and at other times shuddering visibly as her mind occupied itself with some dark imaginings.

"That is the city of Winchester there in the distance," Lucas said after they had been travelling for several hours. Jo shook herself out of her thoughts and fixed her gaze beyond where his finger was pointing. She could see rooftops and a cathedral spire some miles away.

Jo nodded. "It looks pretty."

Almost as soon as she had said it she wondered why she bothered to make remarks like that. It was pretty, it was true, but really, what did that matter in times like these?.Prettiness wasn't of any use to the city's inhabitants who were probably slowly starving to death like the rest of the people they had encountered.

**

They arrived in the city shortly after three and, after asking the way to Holy Trinity Church, made their way to the graveyard. Once they arrived there Jo collapsed onto the grass and Lucas followed shortly after. They took turns to sip from one of the bottles of water they had brought with them from the castle and refilled from streams along the way. Lucas then rifled though his bag and tossed Jo a tin of tuna and a spoon which she ripped open using the tear tab and began to eat hungrily. When she had eaten half of it she passed it to Lucas and rather apologetically wiped the spoon with her clean handkerchief, as they had only one with them, before passing it to him. She opened her own bag and extracted two apples, one for her and one for Lucas and started to shine it them by rubbing them with her skirt.

Jo had been right about the city. It was pretty – beautiful even - in the autumnal sunlight, but the people were starving and she had felt very guilty about not sharing the items of food they had stashed inside their satchels. And it was strange, but the cemetery had a certain tranquility and did make quite a lovely setting, and here it was easy to forget about all the suffering outside the gates, despite all the gravestones surrounding them.

After about twenty minutes Jo looked up to see two figures making their way towards them. "Lucas," she whispered, prodding him in the ribs, to get him to sit up instead of lazing on the grass, "Jim's here."

Once Jim had arrived he had hastily introduced his colleague Mohammed to Jo, then given them a quick update on the situation. The essentials were that they anticipated taking out Roberts and the other two in two days time and in the meantime they would keep observing Roberts from a base outside the city. Their colleague Barbara would stay with the Assistant Police Commissioner and relay any important information to them about their activities. With him, Jim had two rather ancient battery operated two way radios which they would be using to communicate with her.

By the end of their conversation Mohammed was feeling rather pleased with the way things had turned out. Their plans were progressing nicely and the girl had turned out to be prettier than he had expected and, it seemed to him, perfect for the job, though it was also clear why Lucas didn't want her to do it. He had seen his eyes wander several times during their conversation and linger on her possessively. There was definitely something going on between them. He just hoped that, whatever the nature of their relationship was, it wouldn't interfere with their mission.


	33. Chapter 33

**Day Twenty Four: 9:24am**

The past two days had been spent waiting and watching - gathering intelligence about Roberts and his movements. Their operations were hampered by the fact that they had nothing more sophisticated than ancient Russian battery operated bugs and binoculars. Still, desperate times called for any solutions they could find and the bugs hadn't been detected to date.

As Lucas listened to the crackling chatter emitted from the listening device in front of him he wondered not for the first time if the woman Robert's was with would ever shut up. It wasn't that she talked a lot but when she did her accent grated on his nerves something chronic. It was American – of sorts. All sorts actually. At times she sounded like she was starring as a gangster's moll in a 1930s talkie, at other moments like she was practicing for a bit part as Scarlett O'Hara and then sometimes he detected a certain Midwest twang.

By now he'd gathered her name. Sarah. Sarah Caulfield. She had turned up at the property yesterday and it was clear from the conversations she'd had to date that she was heavily involved in Robert's operation.

Lucas was no expert on American speech but he was pretty sure that Sarah's accent wasn't genuine. Lucas wondered if she might in fact be some other nationality in disguise as an American. And this then begged the question of who she really was - some kind of mole perhaps?

Through his binoculars he had been able to make out her features and he wasn't impressed. She had a rather pasty, expressionless kind of face he thought and was given simpering and whining in a most irritating manner. Clearly Roberts had been taken in by her manipulative manner but Lucas found her quite easy to see through.

He supposed she would be considered attractive enough but Lucas didn't find her features pleasing. In his opinion, there were several things wrong with the way she looked. For a start her skin was white when it should have been golden and then her lips were too wide. She should have had a little bow mouth. That was more feminine. And her eyes were also too small. He preferred larger eyes that were a deeper blue, not so washed out as hers.

Lucas put down the binoculars for a moment and concentrated on their conversation.

"Did you get rid of Hairy too?"

"Hairy?" Roberts repeated, puzzled.

"Hairy Pearce," the women replied, with a sickening simper in her voice.

"Oh," Roberts replied, "Harry Pearce – yes – we took him out too."

"Excellent," Sarah replied.

Lucas felt his jaw clench involuntarily. Dislike had quickly turned into hatred for both Roberts and Sarah Caulfield as far as he was concerned.

Both of them were clearly deeply untrustworthy and there was something about that woman that just made his skin crawl.

**

_Just a little pause here for me to say haha Kudos, stick that in your pipe and smoke it! (very annoyed with you for exposing me to that accent for weeks on end – it makes me cringe every time she opens her mouth, urrggh)_


	34. Chapter 34

**Day Twenty Four: 3:31pm **

Jo fidgeted nervously with her handbag as she waited for Peter De Vries to appear. She'd been waiting fifteen minutes already and it appeared that he was running late. She sighed and decided that the only way to fill the time was to reherse her story once more in her head to be sure she was ready for when he finally arrived. She tried not to think about the fact that both Lucas and Mohammed would be watching and listening to her performance through the binoculars and microphones. She could tell from the disapproving look that Lucas had given her before she'd entered the complex that he clearly didn't think she was up to the job, and despite her attempt to ignore that, she'd found the knowledge had shaken her confidence slightly.

She'd began to repeat her opening lines silently to herself when a minute later the door finally opened to reveal a well built man in his early forties of about medium height.

He stared at her for several seconds then walked over to where she sat and held out his hand, shaking hers vigorously.

"Peter De Vries," he introduced himself, flashing her a charming smile. "And your name is?"

"Susanna Parker," she replied, standing up rather hastily, not sure whether she ought to sit once more.

"Sit down, sit down," he gestured. "And what can I do for you today my dear?" he asked her, pulling up a chair opposite her and drawing his chair forward to sit a little too close for comfort.

"Well," she started, "I should perhaps just explain a little of my background if I may," she paused to wait for his reply. He nodded, "of course, please continue – I should be curious to find out more about the history of such a charming young lady."

Jo smiled briefly, then continued, "I am originally from London but for the past three years I have lived in Winchester and have worked as a secretary for a legal firm in the city – Barnes Haworth, you might have heard of it, it's a well known firm. During my time there I was the personal assistant to Mr James Barnes, one of the senior partners. I have a reference from him if you would like to see it. He was very happy with my performance. I did very much enjoy my work there however with all the trouble of late the firm decided to close down and I am now unfortunately without employment though I would very much like to work. Anyway I mentioned to one of my friends that I was looking for work and she lives only a mile or two from here and knew that some important military staff were staying here and suggested that I might approach someone and see if there was any work to be had. I thought perhaps that, with so many demands to juggle at the moment, there might be a need for someone with secretarial skills to assist up here," she said with a hopeful smile, then finished uncertainly, "I heard that the military is quite well provisioned also."

"Ahh, I see," De Vries answered, continuing to look her over with a degree of familiarity which she found rather disturbing. "Miss er.." he hesitated.

"Parker," she replied, smiling sweetly. "But call me Susanna."

"Well, Susanna, unfortunately times are very difficult at the moment and I'm all too aware that many people are struggling out there. This disaster has really stretched our resources beyond our capacity to cope, however," he paused and directed a rather dazzling smile at her, "it seems that you have some useful skills and I am quite fortunately in a position to help a young lady such as yourself through the crisis. You are quite correct in thinking that things have become very busy for us of late and I could certainly do with an assistant. And I could see that you were set up very nicely somewhere not too far from here. And though others may struggle to get by, you would be quite comfortable and wouldn't want for food or the little luxuries we used to enjoy before this rather grave situation befell us. All I would ask in return for this generosity is that you assist me during the day and perhaps in the evening we might get to know each other a little better. I'm sure you will find that I can be very…" he paused to move closer to her and run his hand up her leg, "agreeable."

"_That man is a shameless sleazebag," Lucas exclaimed angrily as he put down the binoculars for a second, then looked a little abashed at his outburst and picked them up once more and resumed listening intently to the conversation. _

So that was the trade off he was after, thought Jo. Sex in exchange for her survival. Unfortunately history would tell that's what it often came down to that for women in times of war or social unrest when unscrupulous individuals were involved. And the reality was, in the position she was supposed to be in, it was unlikely that she would refuse his offer when the alternative was starvation. So her answer would have to be yes, but she needed to play for time.

She steeled herself to fight the urge to remove his hand and smiled politely up at him, while she secretly hoped that his wife was every bit as unpleasant as she sounded and really did have a mouth like a fishwife because in her opinion he quite deserved to be married to some awful old tartar.

"That is a very …generous offer indeed, and I would be foolish not to accept it, especially when it is made with such …" she paused as she sort for a suitably sickening phrase to disguise her disgust of his blatant exploitation of his position and hid her grimace as she finished, "noble intentions."

"So you accept then?" he replied quickly, standing up and pulling her to her feet, then clamping his hand around her waist.

She nodded and tried to smile, while wishing that he would release her from this rather uncomfortable embrace. He was a truly unpleasant man.

She supposed some people might consider him to be attractive but she couldn't see it. If he was taller, and his eyes were blue instead of that rather unattractive shade of brown, and his hair a more definite colour, like black or a very dark brown, instead of a wishy washy sort of blonde, then she could see that he could be quite handsome, perhaps very handsome. But at the moment it turned her stomach when he put his hands on her.

He grinned at her assent, and bent in to whisper to her, "very good then. But first I think we should see if we are in fact compatible."

She was alarmed to find that his hands had moved to find the zip to her dress and he was beginning to tug on it impatiently.

_Beside him, Mohammed put down the binoculars he had taken from Lucas a moment ago to see that Lucas' face had turned from dark to thunder, and he was tightening his grip on his gun. He was pleased to see Lucas wasn't making any move to rise just yet, being prepared to wait to see how Jo responded to this latest turn of events. Mohammed gave him a warning look, which Lucas ignored and returned his attention to the microphones. _

She stepped back hastily and extracted herself from his grasp and replied smoothly, "an excellent suggestion, but perhaps we could have something to eat first. I am very hungry," she paused and batted her eyelashes at him, "and I would so like to be able to focus all of my attention on you."

"_Good," Lucas breathed to himself, sounding relieved. "That was well done," Mohammed added, nodding in agreement. _

"Very well then my dear, I can't argue with your logic," De Vries replied, still displaying that rather unsettling cat that got the cream smile.

He made a movement to head towards the table but she hastily got up herself and pressed his arm and said quickly, "no, you sit down there and make yourself comfortable and I'll fetch you a snack too. What would you like?"

"_Now she can make her move," Mohammed said, holding his breath that this last stage of the operation would proceed smoothly. _

"I think perhaps a piece of cake and a muffin, and maybe a little savory as well," De Vries replied. It was promising to see that not only was she receptive to his little proposition, but that she had a rather delightful willingness to please as well.

Jo smiled at him, while thinking to herself disapprovingly that the man was clearly a glutton as well as a sleaze. And to think there were people not two miles from here who were having to watch their children go without food for days on end while this man and his cronies were living it up in unbridled luxury.

She collected a plate and proceeded to take a slice of cake, a muffin and a savory scone, then while her back was turned to De Vries, discreetly reached inside the handbag hanging loosely off her arm and deposited a couple of drops of a clear liquid on the scone, covering her movement with a handkerchief. She proceeded to butter the scone to disguise the liquid. She then picked up a muffin for herself on another plate and moved over to where De Vries sat and passed him his plate.

She observed casually as he tucked into the chocolate cake and then, having finished that, moved on to the scone.

The conversation flowed smoothly between then for another couple of minutes until De Vries, half way though his muffin, began to clutch at his collar and let out choking sounds. Jo immediately moved over towards him, and asked him what was wrong in a rather alarmed voice. "Can't breathe," he spluttered.

"Oh dear," Jo replied, sounding worried. "Perhaps I should loosen your collar – here let me just get the top button…," she started.

He pulled himself away from her, gasping, "You," he spluttered, his face now a mottled purple as he looked at her accusingly, "You – it was you."

Jo moved closer to him, alarmed by his accusation and placed her hand on his mouth to prevent him from crying out. "Ssh, quiet now. I'll be over soon," hoping to herself that death would indeed come quickly, and quietly.

She was relieved to find that it came within a minute or two, and he collapsed onto the floor, his body rigid. Feeling slightly shaken by events she quickly dragged De Vries' body to the table and placed it under there, making sure it was hidden from view by the table cloth, then stealthily exited the room, feeling satisfied that stage one of their plan had been a success.


	35. Chapter 35

**Day Twenty Four: 4:01pm **

Lucas and Jim had positioned themselves in the trees outside the Estate where Roberts was staying and were now waiting for him to appear on his daily walk. He made a habit of taking a stroll in the gardens each day at around 4pm.

Mohammed's role was to take care of McNeil and he was this very moment laying in wait for McNeil to come back from a visit to the local military camp and would then enact their plan to make him silently 'disappear' while on his return journey.

Sarah Caulfield had left the complex yesterday and their MI6 colleague Barbara Templeton had been tasked with placing the Caulfield woman under home arrest with this assistance of the Police to avoid her causing any further trouble. An operation which they had received word had been completed smoothly some ten minutes earlier.

They had agreed that once the operation had been completed they would travel in two vehicles the first ten miles. Ideally they would have each travelled separately but they could only locate two vehicles in the time available and petrol was of course limited, as the police needed access to all the available supplies. They reasoned that they should have at least ten minutes before the military were alerted to the assassination and they should use this time to remove themselves from the area. They would then split up and proceed the rest of the way towards London on foot. Lucas had insisted that he accompany Jo, and the others had agreed that it was a reasonable precaution, given the dangers that would face them and the fact that a single female would be considered to be an easy target for troublemakers.

"That's him now," Lucas muttered softly to himself as he saw Roberts appear at the door. He caught Jim's eye and nodded to indicate that Roberts was in sight. Jim was positioned in another tree some twenty metres away from Lucas. They had agreed that they would station themselves from different positions and would each take aim at Roberts upon the signal so as to increase the chances of a successful assassination attempt.

Robert's took his time strolling around the garden. When he entered a shrubbery areas which was hidden from view from the main house by a stone wall, Lucas caught Jim's attention and raised his hand slightly to give the signal. He held his breath and counted to five and then pulled the trigger of his rifle, simultaneously with Jim's.

He watched cautiously as, as if in slow motion, Robert's clutched his chest and fell to the ground, letting out a feeble moan. The entire operation had been carried out swiftly and quietly, and fortunately there was no sign that anyone in the house had heard them. After observing the scene for a few seconds, Lucas and Jim sprinted away from the scene towards where the car was hidden some hundred metres away, with an anxious looking Jo waiting inside.

Within a matter of seconds of entering the car, they were away with Lucas in the driver's seat, and Jo and Jim crouched down in the other seats.

They had mapped a route which avoided the military camp and any possible encounters with soldiers and reached the point where they were to hide the car and proceed on foot. Once they exited the vehicle, Lucas and Jo quickly scrambled to collect their belongings and Lucas hastily pulled out his map, taking the opportunity to familiarize himself with their route once more. As with their car journey, it had been designed to minimize the risk of possible encounters with the military and they would avoid major towns until they reached the outskirts of the city of London.

"Well," Lucas said brusquely, looking at Jim, "I guess this is goodbye. For now, anyway – until we regroup in the city. Best of luck to you," he finished, shaking his hand.

"Yes, good luck to you Jim," Jo chipped in, smiling warmly at him.

"Good luck to you both," Jim replied, patting Lucas on the back, before turning and walking the opposite way to begun his journey via another route. After a few seconds he hesitated and turned round to call out to them, "take care of yourselves – both of you."

**

That first evening Lucas and Jo had managed to travel some fifteen miles before finally settling down in a deserted barn for a couple of hours sleep. The next morning Jo awoke, her legs still sore to find Lucas prodding her rather brusquely in the ribs and peering at her. When she scrambled out of the hay, still feeling sleepy, Lucas stood looking at her with an amused expression on his face and then moved forward to pick off a couple of bits of hay from her hair, commenting that if she was to walk around looking like she'd been for a tumble in the hay that would likely raise a few glances.

By lunchtime Jo's legs were positively aching and she was ravenous. She was grateful when Lucas finally announced they could stop for ten minutes and have something to eat from their supplies.

After a short break they resumed their journey. So far, everything had proceeded according to plan. But a little after 3pm things began to go badly wrong when they rounded the corner in a quite country lane to find a detachment of three troops on foot some ten metres in front of them. There was nothing for it but to play cool. After staring at them for a few seconds, one of the younger officers let out a cry, "that's them – that's the one's what killed Roberts."

Lucas and Jo took their chances and made a break for it, quickly turning and running back towards where they had come from, hoping to escape around the corner. Lucas monitored the troops as he ran and was alarmed to see one of the soldiers point his rifle towards Jo. Lucas quickly aimed his rifle at the officer and fired two shots. The young man fell silently to the ground, his colleagues following after him in hot pursuit. Lucas looked up to see another soldier taking aim towards him but quickly picked him and his colleague off in rapid succession, as Jo continued running ahead.

After the shots had been fired Jo turned to stop and waited for Lucas to catch up to her.

"You ok?" she asked, checking him over to see if he was alright.

Lucas nodded silently. "Best keep going now," he said in a strained voice.

They had been hurrying through a field for at least ten minutes before Jo turned to wait for Lucas once more. It was unusual for him to lag behind and she watched him as she waited.

Unobserved, she could see a rather curious expression on his face. It was only when she looked at him more closely that she saw for the first time that his face was unnaturally pale and yet wet with perspiration and then she saw with horror that when his coat moved to the side in the breeze it revealed a dark red stain from where the bullet from the soldiers rifle had entered his body.


	36. Chapter 36

"Lucas," Jo exclaimed, with alarm, "they shot you. Let me look at it," she said, hurrying towards him.

She pulled open his coat and examined his wound, letting out a sharp hissing noise when she saw the dark strain spreading across his chest from his left shoulder. "That doesn't look good."

Lucas ignored her words and said determinedly, "we have to keep going. We need to get away from here."

Jo nodded, knowing he was right, still distracted by the sight of his wound. "Maybe you should apply some pressure to it to control the bleeding."

"I will," he replied shortly.

She didn't like the look of Lucas. His face was a deathly pale colour and there was sweat beading on his forehead. "Can I help you?" she asked hopefully.

As she had expected he shook his head dismissively and they resumed their journey once more, though at a slightly slower pace. Jo watched Lucas anxiously as they walked.

They kept going for an hour, until Jo insisted they stop for a short break and have something to eat. After a five minute pause, they continued on once again.

Their journey took them across beautiful country meadows, and forests alight with vibrant colours of autumn. They continued for almost two hours, until dusk settled upon the landscape and Jo looked to her right to see Lucas sway strangely and then collapse on the ground.

**

Jo let out a little cry then hurried over to where Lucas lay unconscious on the ground. She had known this was coming. He couldn't simply continue walking for ever in the state he was in, though he would insist on thinking he could. But when it happened it had been much more frightening, much more alarming than she had anticipated.

She checked him over, noting with concern that he was white and his face covered with perspiration and the blood had soaked through his clothing and his hands were now stained a rich red colour from the blood seeping out of him. Without a doctor there was little she could do for him, except apply pressure to help stem the bleeding and keep him warm. She did consider trying to find a doctor but it would be impossibly dangerous. The military were clearly already on the lookout for them and once they found the troops, there was a good chance they would figure out they were in the area. She hoped that wouldn't happen for a while yet. And if the military located them both, she was under no illusions about what they would do to them.

She opened Lucas' bag and removed a T shirt, which she wrapped around his shoulder tightly, then removed her navy cardigan and placed it on top of Lucas and scanned the wooded area around which surrounded them distractedly, while she considered what she should do next.


	37. Chapter 37

After a little while Jo decided she had to leave Lucas and explore a little further afield to see if she could find anything to assist them. She moved Lucas so that he was hidden in some bushes, and made him as comfortable as possible. She picked up his gun and then paused to scribble a little coded note to him with a pencil from his bag saying she would be back soon in case he woke up and placed it in his pocket.

After she had been walking for about twenty minutes she spotted an old farmhouse in the distance and picked up her pace, approaching it cautiously. When she got nearer to the house she crept towards it, hiding behind one of the hedges that surrounded it. She warily cased the exterior of the property, looking for signs of life within. When she saw none, she hesitantly tried the door. It was open. Holding her gun in front of her she entered the house, moving from room to room looking for signs of its inhabitants.

When she reached one of the rooms upstairs she came across a terrifying discovery. An elderly man and woman lying on the floor, surrounded by a pool of blood. The man had a number of wounds to his torso and his eyes were still open and staring upwards with a dazed expression. The woman lay face down on the floor with a kitchen knife in her back. It was a truly gruesome scene. She gingerly moved towards the woman and checked her pulse. Nothing. Her body was cold and it seemed certain that she had been dead for some time. Perhaps two or three days as the bodies were beginning to smell.

She knew she should have learned to master her emotions better after nearly four years in her job but the scene was truly horrifying. When she left the room she found she could no longer control her stomach. Luckily she managed to find the toilet in time and sat for a minute bent over the toilet bowl as she was violently ill.

After a minute she staggered to her feet then pushed her hair back from her face and started to move downstairs, a sour taste still in her mouth. She thought with regret that she would have liked to be able to give them a proper burial but time was short and she had to think of Lucas, else he could well end up as badly off as this pair. As that idea passed though her head she felt herself flinch.

When she reached the bottom of the stairs she began to search through the cupboards, pleased to find some antiseptic and bandages in the bathroom cabinet. Most of the food had been taken but she did manage to locate a packet of biscuits tucked away behind some crockery and some creamed rice pudding in a self opening tin. Farming families, such as this couple, tended to be better off food wise than others, although this also made them more prone to being attacked.

Steeling herself she hastily ran up the stairs once more into the bedroom, and, ignoring the bodies, grabbed a blanket and then pulled open the cupboard. She quickly found a man's shirt and coat and a rather demure navy skirt and dark green coat which reached to her knees. After she had put the new outfit on and added a paisley headscarf which she wrapped it around her hair to hide its colour she noted with some satisfaction that she looked quite different to how she had appeared only a few minutes earlier.

As she left the house and prepared to start back towards Lucas, her eyes lit on a dark wooden object leaning against an outhouse. In the dim light it was becoming difficult to make out objects and she moved closer to examine it, pleased to find it was indeed what she had first thought. A wheelbarrow. The worry that had been playing on her mind for the past half hour was that she knew they needed to keep moving, but that Lucas couldn't and he was too heavy for her to lift on her own. But a wheelbarrow opened up the possibility of continuing their journey.

She lifted it upright, pleased to see it was a sturdy object and still in reasonable condition, then moved off deeper into the woods to collect Lucas.

**

**Day Twenty Nine: 06:32 pm**

Four days had passed since their encounter with the soldiers and with each day that passed Jo was pleased to see that Lucas was growing stronger and more energetic.

That first evening she had had to transport Lucas in the wheelbarrow, while he slipped in and out of consciousness. Lucas hadn't been a good fit for the wheelbarrow, his long limbs sticking out the side, and his legs trailing almost to the ground, but she had managed to keep moving.

The next day she found she would pay for it as she felt the aching in her arms almost as soon as she woke up. But she was pleased she had made the effort when, only a few minutes later, Lucas opened his eyes and muttered softly to himself that his shoulder hurt.

For the next two days, they had continued their journey on foot, making sure to take stops at regular intervals and to stick to fields and forests rather than roads. The first afternoon they had found a little spot hidden from view in a forest and slept their quietly for a few hours and then resumed their journey under the cover of darkness. This pattern of sleeping during the day and travelling at night continued for the next two days. By the third day Lucas was beginning to look less strained and he was not so tired as he had been the past few days. She could tell he was feeling better by the number of jokes he would crack as they travelled. She preferred it when they were together in the quiet darkness of night where she didn't have to hide her smiles at his comments. She noticed in a way that she had never had before that Lucas had the kind of voice you could listen to for hours on end and never grow bored with. It had a both a husky manliness about it and a soft intimacy which it was easy to be seduced by.

And this evening, after a sleep, Lucas was beginning to look distinctly like his old self once more. So much so that when they woke he had no hesitation in moving out from their hiding place and stripping off energetically and wading into the gentle stream nearby. Jo turned away once he began to strip off, thinking as she did so that it was somewhat tempting to turn around. But she didn't.

After a few minutes he announced brusquely, "I'm decent. You can turn around now," then added, "I'll turn around if you want to strip off and go for a dip."

She nodded, thinking that it would be very pleasant to feel properly clean once more, "if you would please."

She hastily pulled off her coat and jumper and unfastened her skirt and then finally removed her underwear and sank into the river, her back to Lucas as she bathed in the stream.

After a few short minutes she stood up and began to move towards the river bank, the water pooling around her waist.

She had only been on her feet for a few seconds before she raised her eyes to see Lucas staring at her as if transfixed, with a barely contained desire in his eyes.

In those few moments the memories of those few too short stolen hours at the castle had come rushing back to him so strongly it was as if he could hardly breathe for the want of her.

His eyes took in the elegant arch of her neck, the sprinkling of freckles on her shoulders, and the soft curves of her breasts. He wanted to brush the strand of hair from her cheeks where it has settled in a tangled curl and feel the caress of her eyelashes on his face once more. He determined in that moment that he would make her his once more or die trying.

But first, he reminded himself, he must concentrate on completing his duty to his country.

She blushed, startled by his gaze and then quickly covered herself with her hands. "You looked!," she exclaimed crossly. "You said you wouldn't. Oh for heavens sake stop gawping and turn around so that I can get dressed."

Lucas did as he was asked, reluctantly, finding it easier to think normally once more now that she was no longer in view.

"Well, don't you have anything to say for yourself?" she inquired irritably, speaking to Lucas' back as she scrambled to pull on her clothes.

"Who know's my days might be numbered," he replied. "Is it so unreasonable that I should enjoy them while I can?" She could tell he was smiling as he said that, even though she couldn't see him.

"Yes, it is when it involves deviously spying on me," she replied angrily. "In my opinion you've been spending far too much time "taking one for the team" in strip joints of late and it has impaired your ability to think with the correct parts of your anatomy," then added as an afterthought,"I suppose Ros is to blame partly, but I'm not letting you off the hook either."

His reply infuriated her. "Well," he said lightly, "we've clearly established that I was just acting as I've been trained to. And I didn't think you would hit me, given that I'm injured and all."

"I would dearly like to though and Ros always said that revenge is a dish best served cold," Jo replied shortly, and then added sharply as she turned to resume their journey towards the city of London, "and you know her advice is always sound."

**

**_And now a Sarah Caulfield Bites the Dust Sweepstake…. _**

_Hmm, have been wondering whether I should kill off Sarah Caulfield. Just for the sheer satisfaction of it. _

_Don't really have any set ideas about how this should happen – but I think there may be a few readers out there who might have been fantasizing about this_

_So let me know if you think she should die and also if you have any suggestions about how (this will probably sound a bit like Cluedo "in the conservatory with a candlestick")_

_Also if there is any dialogue you would like to see between characters and her before she meets her maker _

_I don't promise to incorporate suggestions but will have a look at them and see if I can use them__ - they have to tie in a bit with the plot but I don't mind something a bit creative_

_So send me your suggestions through the review button anyway and remember to let me know how you are liking the story_


	38. Chapter 38

**Day Thirty: 6:38pm**

By the fifth day of their journey it was difficult to tell that Lucas had ever been injured. Not only had he mastered the art of stoically soldiering on, but it seemed he had rapid powers of recovery as well.

When they resumed their walk once more that evening after a rest, Jo found that as edged closer to the city a wave of optimism took hold of her at the thought that they were so close to regaining control of the country and there was hope that they might reestablish some order and restore some sense of normality to the nation.

It made her unusually chatty, in an excitable sort of way. She even ventured to wonder out loud whether, when things were back to normal, they might find out where Harry was, and maybe even find Ros alive, tucked away in the countryside somewhere.

Lucas met her comment in silence and turned his face away. But not quickly enough for her to miss the look of such sadness on his face that she couldn't fail to realize that he knew more than what he had told her.

"Lucas," she said sharply, "what is it? Do you know something about what happened to Ros?"

Lucas stopped in his tracks and turned to face her. She moved towards him, searching his face as she tried to guess what he might say next. She was smart enough to be able to predict that whatever it was it wasn't going to be good.

"Jo," he started quietly, "I'm afraid that Jim had some news about Ros that wasn't good. He had a report from a source, a _reliable _source, to say that Roberts had her disposed of. And," he continued, not liking the expression on her face, but wanting to say everything that had to be said quickly, so that it was all done with, "he had news about Harry too – that Roberts had Harry and the other members of the JIC assassinated."

"But," she protested, staring at him, "there are twenty three members of the JIC. How can he have assassinated so many important people and not have had anyone notice. That can't be right. Surely the intelligence is wrong."

In moments like this, Lucas knew her well enough to know that at first Jo would think with her heart first, and then after a little while, her reason would take over. It took only a minute or so for her to comprehend that what he was telling her was the truth and when she did the look of utter devastation on her face made his throat feel suddenly dry.

And then she started to cry.

Lucas had had in the back of his mind for several days that he would have to tell her about Harry and Ros sometime, but he had always pushed the thought away when it came to him, telling himself he could do it later.

And now he knew very well why he had never gotten round to telling Jo about Harry and Ros. Because he was afraid of this. Seeing her so distraught felt very much like someone had reached inside his body and ripped his heart right out.

He pulled her close so that her head lay on his chest and smoothed her hair gently. "I know it's upsetting. But darling, it'll be ok in the end. You're still here and I'm still here and we'll get by. Really we will, I promise you sweetheart."

Her tears were muffled by his shirt but he could feel her gasping and the sobs continuing to wrack her body. He stood there holding her like that for what seemed like hours, though he reasoned it could have only been perhaps ten minutes.

"Come on now Jo," he said pulling her from him eventually to hold her by the arms and look at her face as she sniffed and kept her eyes on the ground. "We have to go now so no more tears now," he said firmly. "You understand?"

It wasn't what he wanted to say to her, but it was what needed to be said. Now was not the time, he reminded himself. Now they were so close to victory, they needed to focus on completing the mission.

She nodded quietly, still sniffing to herself and followed him as he lead the way. It was mortally embarrassing to think that Lucas had seen her completely lose control of her emotions and act so unprofessionally. Why couldn't she be more controlled – more like …Ros. Oh, she felt her eyes almost start to water again - that thought just upset her once more.

She had to pull herself together. She could tell her tears had made Lucas uncomfortable and she needed to put aside any thoughts of Harry and Ros and focus on their mission now. If she didn't stop crying she might lose his good opinion forever. And there was an unexpected sting to that idea. She didn't know why his opinion of her mattered so, but she did care what he thought of her. She cared a lot for some reason.

Lucas turned round to watch her as she wiped the tears from her face and pushed back the strand of hair which had come loose from its clip and tried to restore some semblance of normality to their operation, and felt his heart contract a little at the sight.

**

Four hours later they reached the outskirts of London under cover of nightfall. They had planned to enter the city from the North, rather than from the west from where they had come from. But as they moved nearer to the city, it soon became clear from the skyline that something was terribly wrong.

The city should have been covered in darkness, but instead an incandescent orange glow was visible from afar. London was alight – and it was as if the whole world was on fire.

Jo felt her stomach lurch as her eyes took in the scene. She looked to Lucas, hoping he would give them some direction as to what to do.

Fortunately, he seemed to be taking it all in his stride, and was looking cool, calm and self assured, which was a long way from how she felt herself, even if she hadn't shown it.

"I need to go in there," Lucas announced, looking determined, "to see what we can do. There will still be civilians in the city and there's no form of authority anymore and you get bet your bottom dollar the fire service will have buggered off long before now so I don't expect there's anyone to help them. And if we don't stop it the fire will spread throughout the whole city and we won't be left with half a city but with a nothing but a pile of charred rubble and a dot on the map to remember that London ever existed."

Jo nodded, and swallowed. London was her city – the place she had been born, and it was unthinkable that it should be raised to the ground. "I'm coming with you."

She could see that Lucas was about to argue with her, and her chin jutted out stubbornly, "don't think you can tell me otherwise, Lucas. It's my job to help, same as you."

She was relieved that Lucas said nothing in reply, but she could tell he would have preferred to leave her outside the city walls.

Lucas led the way silently as they ventured forth towards the flames.


	39. Chapter 39

Inside the city, the fire was much larger than they had imagined. Flames had engulfed the entire western side of the city as far as they could see.

They had to stop its spread, but they were but two people. And they had no equipment, no resources, no one to call for backup.

Lucas stood silently observing the flames for a minute.

A plan was forming in his mind that might make it possible to stop the fire from spreading, but he would need assistance. "Jo," he began, "go and get everyone you can find and bring them back here to meet me," he ordered. "I have an idea but I will need some help for it to work."

"Ok," she responded promptly.

Some ten minutes later Jo returned with around fifteen people in tow, some clearly eager to help, others more reluctant.

Lucas called the group forward and began to explain his plan, giving them precise instructions as to what each person was to do. After a few minutes briefing, the group dispersed and each person hurried to carry out their assigned task.

Jo was no exception and she had run forward closer to the flames to scour the area as per Lucas' instructions.

Lucas had been engrossed in checking up to see that their helpers were carrying out their instructions correctly, and giving further orders about what they were to do next, and it wasn't until some time later that he realized he hadn't seen Jo for some minutes.

He turned around to look for her, but all he could see was smoke and flames. He called her name, his voice choked with the thick smoke that clogged the air.

There was no reply. He tried again, but she didn't reply. He turned and moved backwards, scanning the ground as best he could.

After a few minutes he finally found her, lying on the ground, unconscious. "Jo," he cried, desperately hoping she would reply.

He was met with silence. He checked her over, relieved to find she was still breathing. He quickly picked her up in his arms and staggered away from the flames.

It wasn't until they were well outside the city that he finally put her down, placing her gently on the ground.

A few hundred feet away he could see a young woman and a middle aged man. He beckoned them over.

"I need your help," he began. "I am an MI5 officer and we are working to put out the fire and get this country back on track but we are few and far between these days. Until today your country hasn't asked much from you, but I am telling you now that we desperately need your help. She is also from MI5 and it is imperative that she be given the best possible care. I want you to take her away from here and get her to some place safe. You must give me your word that you will take good care of her. If it is a choice between food or medicine for her or for others, she must come first," he stated.

It was an unusual opening to a conversation but the pair took in Lucas' appearance and his unusual degree of self assurance and found it hard not to believe that he was genuine.

The girl nodded, and her father added, "we will do our best sir." They could tell he was deadly serious. He was an exceptionally tall man and the girl didn't really care to imagine what he might do to them if she didn't do as he said.

He eyed them both for a moment, then seeming to be satisfied that they would be true to their word, he nodded, and pressed the man's hand briefly, "thank you. And whatever you do, don't let her come back here. Keep her away from here and keep her safe."

**

Jo didn't regain consciousness until some four hours later. By that time she had been transported in an ancient hand operated railway cart along the railway tracks to a little town some fifteen miles outside London, and then moved to the town's hospital.

When she awoke she was startled by the strangeness of it all. Somehow the place was _clean_. And _quiet_ – and terribly peaceful.

After a few minutes a lady in an old T shirt and a pair of jeans passed by her bed and paused, seeing that she was awake. "So you're back in the land of the living," she began cheerfully.

Jo nodded, and coughed. When she had recovered a little, she opened her mouth. "Where am I?" she asked.

"St Cuthbert's Hospital in Little Kingswood," the lady replied with a smile. "My name is Rachel by the way. I'm a volunteer at the hospital. I should get the sister to come and see you."

Jo nodded, feeling exhausted.

A few minutes later, a rather efficient looking lady in her fifties appeared at her bedside. "How are you feeling then young lady,?" she asked brusquely.

"Tired," Jo replied, "my throat hurts – its all dry and sort of gravelly, and my eyes are all bleary."

"That's the smoke," the nurse replied. "And how are you feeling otherwise?"

"I don't know," Jo replied, her brain too weary to think of a reply, her head slumping back on the pillow.

The nurse said nothing, but moved forward to check her over.

"Am I quite well?" Jo asked hesitantly, after a few moments of her ministrations, suddenly thinking of something that worried her, but that she wasn't quite sure how to ask.

"You haven't lost the baby if that's what you mean," the nurse replied promptly, and then smiled at her briefly.

"Oh," Jo replied, startled by her comment. "I – I didn't really think I could be having a baby. I did sort of wonder about being late but thought it must be the drama and everything. Are you certain that I am having a baby then?"

"Quite certain," the nurse replied, busying herself writing notes on her clipboard, "now I think you should really have a drink," she added, and moved forward to pour her a glass of water.

"The hospital has water," Jo mused aloud.

"Yes, indeed, we are very fortunate to have a number of wells in Little Kingswood which have kept us well supplied. They were constructed in Roman times and have stood the test of time. And I expect that Rachel will be along shortly to give you a bath and make you a little more presentable."

Jo grimaced, thinking to herself tiredly that she must look like a right fright.

As she waited for Rachel to appear her thoughts returned to the starting news that she was pregnant. It was all so sudden and confusing and she couldn't even begin to imagine what on earth Lucas would have to say about that.

**

_Thank you all for your Sarah related suggestions. There were parts of all of the suggestions that I liked. You will have to keep reading to see how I use them…_

_And back to this chapter, I wonder what Lucas will make of this latest development?_


	40. Chapter 40

The next morning Jo woke late to find her body aching inexplicably and her throat still sore. She sat up cautiously, then reached for the water jug to pour herself a drink.

She was better than yesterday, but no where near normal. In fact, now she considered it she wouldn't be normal again for nearly nine more months.

It still seemed odd to her that she would be a mother. It felt a bit like a friend had persuaded her to borrow her clothes and they didn't quite sit right on her and yet she couldn't take them off because she had nothing else to wear.

She had spent only one night with Lucas and at the time it had seemed so unlikely that a child would be result. But then she thought about what Lucas was like and what it had been like when he made love to her and it seemed almost inevitable that he would leave some trace of himself inside her – that she would be somehow different afterwards.

She wondered what was their relationship precisely. Not lovers. Colleagues, yes, but more than that. But not exactly friends either. Sort of – undefined, really.

She tried to recall their interactions, hoping that it might help her see things more clearly. Lucas had always been polite towards her, gentlemanly. He had treated her as an equal, had always been interested in what she had to say, and yet he was always the one in control, the senior officer. He was protective of her, yes. But Adam had been too. And Lucas was Adam's replacement so it seemed only natural that he would be.

There had been that night at the castle when they had been more than colleagues. But that had been one night. She supposed Lucas must have been lonely ever since he had found out that his wife had moved on. So in a way something like that must have been on the cards for a while. Or maybe be was simply bored when put in a confined environment with nothing to do with himself. And she was the one not because he had chosen her, but because circumstances had made her the only available option.

She thought he might care for her. But he cared for the rest of the team too. Harry and Ros, and even Malcolm, though he didn't know how to show it in the right way, clearly.

But she didn't think that she meant any more or less to Lucas than the other members of the team. Lucas was hard to read at the best of times and she couldn't possibly predict how he might react when he found out about the baby. And the thought of his reaction made her feel a little queasy, though it was surely too early for that to be the baby. It must be her nerves instead.

She wasn't stupid. She knew that now was not a good time to bring up a child. This world was harsh. Getting by was difficult for even the toughest individuals. How much more difficult would things be for a child. And yet, it was there now and there it would stay. A baby. Inside of her. For the moment it could stay there quietly, and she would barely even notice it existed at all. But in a few weeks it would start to make its presence felt – maybe she would feel ill, or develop inexplicable cravings for things that would be considered so ridiculously extravagant in an environment where you couldn't even buy a boiled potato that it would drive her insane. And then eventually it would become impossible to hide. Her body would become swollen and it would kick at all hours and everyone would see so clearly what could no longer be disguised. And Lucas would see. Especially Lucas, who was far more observant than most people even on an off day.

So sooner or later she knew she had to tell him, but she hoped it could be later. Things might be different then. Easier. She imagined hopefully that one day they might wake up and the world would be suddenly restored to what it was, and everything would be sunshine and rainbows and little cottages in the country with white picket fences and she knew almost as soon as she thought of it that that day was not on the horizon anytime soon.

She put her hands on her tummy, wondering if children chose to be born, or was it really just random chance. Did they pick out their parents? "I like him, he has an honest face," or "he does an excellent Jim Carey impersonation," or perhaps, "she smells nice and looks rather cuddly. I think I'll have her."

But then all sorts of horrible people had children too, and surely no one would choose Joseph Stalin or Mussolini as a parent? So it must just be chance then. But whoever this child was she didn't think they could do badly with Lucas as their father. He would be honest, and kind, but firm. And principled. And in her heart she knew that she would love this child from the moment it opened its eyes. She liked children, and always had done, but with her own child the emotion would be a hundred times stronger. A little being that would rely on her so entirely.

And the baby couldn't help but remind her of _him_. What it had felt like to have his hands around her waist and his limbs tangled with hers so that she could no longer tell where he ended and she began. And his lips against her ears, whispering sweet things to her as she drifted towards sleep that she had almost forgotten until this moment. That she was beautiful. And special. That he would take care of her always. It was almost like an ache inside of her when she thought about that.

She wondered where he was now. He always seemed so in control it was impossible to imagine that he hadn't managed to bring some order to the situation. But the fire had been so dangerous, so widespread that she knew it would take some time to restore order.

She hoped Lucas would stay safe. He was the only other one left now from Section D and she didn't think she could bear any more losses, and, even though her own relationship with Lucas was uncertain, she could see that her baby badly needed a father in times like these.


	41. Chapter 41

**Day Thirty One: 11:12am**

At three years old, Timothy O'Reilly had seen a lifetime of suffering over the past four weeks.

First his daddy had gone in to work one day in the city and never come home and then he and his mummy and his little sister Anna had had to leave their lovely warm home and start walking.

They had left four days after Daddy had left home for the last time. When they were at home they had gone to the park, and to the zoo, and at home he had had his toy cars to play with and he could watch TV and have his friends to visit. But since they had left his life had become about walking. He didn't like the way things were now because his legs were always sore and there was never enough food so he was hungry all the time.

And after Anna had got sicker and sicker until they had to leave her behind in a field in the country where Mummy said that soon some people would be along to collect her, his Mummy had always been so sad. Sometimes he would hear her crying at night and although he didn't fully comprehend the reason for it, he felt her pain as if it was his own.

The only thing that had made mummy smile lately had been the thought of going home. They had talked about for many days now and each day as they walked, Mummy would tell him that they were getting closer to their home. And when his mummy smiled, Timothy couldn't help but smile too.

But as they got closer to the city there was a strange smell in the air. The same smell that had filled the house when Daddy had cooked sausages and left them in the pan too long so that Mummy growled at him for burning them. Only the smell was much, much stronger so that it clogged the air and when you opened your mouth it was hard to breathe.

Timothy's childish finger pointed to the dozen black trails that rose from the ground in the distance and curled high in the sky in front of them, "look at that Mummy, the sky is all grubby."

His Mummy hadn't said anything to that, only picked him up and carried him with her so that he didn't have to walk anymore and he was pleased that now his tired legs could have a rest but he didn't like that that nasty smell grew stronger the further they walked.

And after a while he stopped seeing green and instead everything on the ground was black and broken and everywhere it was like people had been playing in piles of dirty rubbish and had forgotten to clear it away so that he couldn't see the grass anymore.

Although he could remember Mummy saying a while ago that the next place they got to would be London, Timothy was sure that this place wasn't London. He could remember what London was like - rows of little houses, and shops and parks. Cars and buses and lots of people about on the streets and everything always busy. This place was completely different. There were no people, and it stank and was ever so quiet.

As they walked he could see his Mummy's eyes become wet and then gradually he could see the wetness began to slide down her face, although she made no sound. So his Mummy didn't see the strange figure that emerged from behind the blackness and smoke and watched him for a moment or two and then vanished. But Timothy did.

He was certain it was a monster and the little boy ducked to hide his face against his mother's shoulder.

The face he had seen was sooty black, with eyes that were a piercing blue colour. It was tall and it stared at him until he moved his head to shield himself from it. He didn't like this place that was not London and was home to monsters like that. He didn't like it at all.

**

_Just a short chapter this time, more to come soon _


	42. Chapter 42

**

**Day Thirty One: 4:24pm **

Edgar Rawlins was a relatively unassuming, quiet sort of man. At the age of 61 and after twenty seven years in politics he had seen his share of comings and goings. For the past sixteen years he had been the sitting MP for the sleepy rural constituency of Selbourne in the West of England, an area in which until very recently nothing very much ever happened and the people were, like Edgar, also generally unassuming, quiet sort of people.

So when a young Asian man had arrived at his door one day with the news that Edgar was to be appointed acting Prime Minister, he had, unsurprisingly, received quite a shock. But, after politely inviting the young man in for a cup of tea and listening to further explanations from him about the whys and wherefores of the situation, Edgar announced, with a certain dignity and calmness, that if his country needed him, he was ready to do his duty.

And so it was that, five days later, Edgar found himself sitting around a table in a disused London warehouse with Mohammed Kahil and two new faces to receive his first formal briefing as part of his new role.

Jim began with a barrage of facts and figures cataloguing the damage the tsunami had done to the coastal cities and greater London, of which approximately 40% had been destroyed.

After almost half an hour, he paused then looked at Lucas for an update on the damage caused by the fire.

"I would say that around one fifth of the city was destroyed in yesterday's fire," Lucas estimated, his face somber as he considered the fate of the people trapped inside the inferno.

The new Prime Minister looked at him gravely for a minute before enquiring how they had managed to extinguish it.

Lucas explained that, with the assistance of the volunteers they had managed to create firebreaks to the North, West and East of the fire, and had used the Thames as a natural barrier to the south. After several hours the fire had burned itself out, having no where else to go.

The Prime Minister nodded approvingly, "well done indeed – the fact that we even have a city is due to your efforts."

After having been assured that the fire was fully extinguished, the Prime Minister asked for the others views on what should be done next.

"Feeding the people must be our priority," Jim responded firmly. Lucas nodded in agreement.

"We can forget about getting any outside assistance," Lucas began. "The UN must be completely overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster. I'm sure they'll be concentrating their efforts on places worse off than us. We may get some imports in but I wouldn't count on the security of supply, given the demand in other places.

He continued, "I've heard there is food in the North. Not a lot – but some still. Up until now there hasn't been enough fuel to transport it to where it needs to be though."

"So let's move some of that down here then," the Prime Minister responded.

Jim nodded, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Already taken care of, the Police have arranged for the first truckloads to be on their way already and they should arrive this evening."

"Excellent," the Prime Minister replied.

Lucas added, "We should arrange dispersal from the reporting centres or the schools."

Jim and the Prime Minister nodded in agreement.

"We need to get the harvest in," the Prime Minister stated. As a rural man he was well aware of the need to harvest all of the nation's crops now in the autumn to try to avoid the famine continuing through the winter.

"We will need all hands on deck to make sure we get the harvest in on time. A lot of the workforce who usually do this are no longer with us unfortunately," Mohammed replied.

"We need to enlist the help of the people to do that and the army can help as well. And we need to set aside some of the supplies from the North to feed the army. We need to keep them paid and well fed otherwise we're likely to encounter trouble," Lucas added shrewdly.

"It'll be like World War Two all over again – everyone mucking in for the greater good," said the Prime Minister.

"Solidarity through adversity," Jim added, with a slight smile, then added brusquely, "Lucas and Mohammed will make the necessary arrangements with our Police Colleagues. In the meantime I will need to brief you on the constitutional situation from here on in. And on our plans to deal with any disquiet from our friends in the military."

As Lucas got up to leave he thought to himself that, on first appearance the new Prime Minister seemed a rather quiet, self contained sort of man. But his ability to withstand the storms of political life without so much as a hint of scandal for nearly thirty years spoke both of a rather the canny instinct and a moral uprightness and decency that would make be a refreshing change from General Roberts.

It wasn't until he was outside again where the bitter scent of smoke hung in the air that he was reminded of something that had been in the back of his mind all day, but that he had tried to push away from him so that he could concentrate on his mission. A something in the form of a girl with golden hair and eyes as blue as the sky on a summer day and as sweet a disposition as you could ever hope to find. He wondered where she was and desperately hoped that his Joanna would stay safe and sheltered from the chaos that had engulfed the country.

Twenty miles away in a quiet country hospital, the girl with the golden hair sat alone in her room wondering whether Lucas was safe and whether peace and prosperity would ever be restored to this once great nation or whether from their first breath their child would enter a world where every day was a bitter contest for survival.

**

_Please review and let me know how you are liking the story. _


	43. Chapter 43

**Day Thirty One: 7:45pm **

Lucas was relieved when three hours later the first trucks of food arrived and he was able to eat for the first time in two days. And shortly after the food arrived, a tanker of water followed, so that he could also have a drink and wash the soot from his face. It was amazing what a little food and the feeling of being presentable did for his spirits. He and Mohammed worked solidly into the evening with the Police to organize the dispersal of food and water and arrange for the transport of more trucks over the next few days. He briefed the Police on the need to organize volunteers to help with the harvest of crops and they offered to oversee this operation, which would commence the next day.

By 8pm he was beginning to feel confident that things were progressing nicely. Or so he thought until Jim arrived at the office and pulled him aside for a quiet word.

"We have a situation," he began, his face grim.

"What kind of situation?" Lucas replied tensely.

"A Sarah Caulfield related situation," Jim replied.

Trust that woman to make trouble, Lucas thought. "I thought she was in the custody of the Police."

"She was until recently. Turns out she's more devious that we imagined. She managed to lure one of the officers into her bed and steal his gun then she shot him at point blank range. She then killed his colleague and escaped. We didn't know where she got to until we received a tip off about her current address."

"She sounds like a nasty piece of work," Lucas replied angrily.

Jim nodded, "definitely. And what's worse we've heard she's plotting something big."

"Go on," Lucas urged, his attention focused on Jim.

"It took us a while to work out who she was and how she was tied up with Roberts. It turns out her name isn't Sarah Caulfield at all. It's Mary Hansen. And she's not American – she was born in Ireland but she's actually Australian. And wanted for murder there which is why she fled the country and has been travelling on an American passport."

Lucas snorted to himself, "who she thinks she's fooling with that accent is beyond me really."

Jim paused and grinned briefly, before resuming his dialogue.

Jim continued, "anyway eventually we placed her as the UK representative of Exxon Mobil. As you'll be aware in a national emergency the Government has the ability to requisition vital supplies. Oil is one example of this. Roberts struck a deal with Caulfield that in exchange for supplying the military with a supply of petrol and a generous bribe, they could charge whatever they wanted at the pumps. Because fuel is in such short supply there's no competition from other suppliers they would have effectively have had a monopoly. Usually we would have expected the Government to step in with some form of price control to see that fuel is still affordable to ordinary people but with Roberts it was a case of him only looking out for his own interests. Our intelligence is that she wanted to fix the price of petrol at four pounds a litre."

"_Four_ pounds a litre," Lucas repeated. "That's outrageous. That's more than three times what it used to cost."

"It certainly is. And now Ms Caulfield, or Hansen as I should call her, is talking with Sir Tony Elworthy from the Tory Party about how she can assist him to take power and ensure that the deal she struck with Roberts remains in place. Our understanding is that she knows that Mr Rawlins is in line to act as PM and she has been whispering in Sir Tony's ear that they need to take him out."

Lucas frowned. Sir Tony Elworthy was a senior member of the Tory Party and had a reputation for devious, self serving politics and was one of the worst possible choices to lead the nation back from anarchy.

"And if that happens we could be right back where we were with Roberts," Jim added. "And with petrol staying so expensive, even if Sir Tony's intentions are good, which I sincerely doubt given his reputation, the cost of fuel will mean that the private sector won't be able to afford fuel and consequently they'll be no progress on reconstruction and hardly any economic activity to speak of. And the British people will stay how they are now – like we're living in the dark ages."

"So we need to take out Mary Hansen aka Sarah Caulfield," Lucas stated.

Jim nodded, "immediately."

"I think I'm up to it," Lucas replied coolly. "What's the address?"

**

An hour later Lucas found himself waiting outside a rather posh north London street on a chilly Autumn evening, waiting for the Caulfield Hansen woman to emerge.

She did eventually, some two hours after he'd arrived.

When she entered the street, she took a long look at the tall figure that emerged from the shadows and sidled up to him. "What's a handsome fella like you doing in a place like this?" she questioned.

Lucas wondered why she insisted on attempting to pull off such clichéd lines in what could only be described as a truly appalling southern accent.

He forced down his feelings of disgust and replied lightly, "just passing the time."

"Well perhaps you'd care to pass the time in my apartment," she replied promptly.

Lucas was a little taken aback with the speed with which this woman moved. She'd only seen him for possibly thirty seconds in the dark and she was already inviting him back to her apartment. That had to be the world's fastest pickup. Clearly the woman was completely devoid of morals. He was pleased he had his gun safely tucked away inside his jacket, considering what had happened to the last man she had taken to bed.

Lucas nodded, and gave her a lazy grin, while thinking to himself that hopefully he could get this over quickly without being forced to touch that viperous snake.

**

Inside the apartment, Lucas found that she moved even faster than outside. He had barely even closed the door before she was on him, her hands pulling at his belt and tugging at his shirt.

And he didn't like it. Her fingers were icy and so was her self satisfied smile. "Easy," Lucas murmered, "this isn't a race."

"Wanna bet?" she replied.

God god, he thought to himself, kissing her might well be preferable to listening to her atrocious mangling of what was otherwise a perfectly respectable accent. But he couldn't quite bring himself to do it. Now had to be time to make his move. He moved around her to that he stood behind her and clasped her arms in one of his hands. With the other he withdrew his gun from his jacket and quickly brought it to her head.

"Nooo," she wined, "hooneyy, why would you kill me, I'm just a sweet little Yankie. I wouldn't hurt a fly."

"Is that what you told your two husbands before you threw them off the balcony?," Lucas replied coolly. "Or what you would say to the mother of the Police officer you killed the other day. Her boy was only nineteen years old and she'd already lost her only other child in the tsunami. Or what about the wife of the other officer you killed? Do you think she'll be telling her children that you're just a sweet little Yankie?"

"They had it coming," she snarled viciously, and then suddenly her voice changed into a sickly sweet tone, "I could make you happy honey. I know how to please men – just let me try."

"What and find myself with a bullet through the brain afterwards? Give me some credit."

Lucas's lips curled as his fingers pulled back on the trigger, "You disgust me."

**

Jo was relieved when, on the second morning she woke up in the hospital, after a short examination, she was finally pronounced well enough to leave the hospital.

During her stay she had been well care for, and more unexpectedly, well fed. She'd been surprised to find yesterday morning that breakfast had arrived shortly after she'd woken and lunch promptly at 1pm.

She'd questioned Rachel about this, only to find that the town had made an arrangement with some of the local farmers, one of whom was the Chairman of the local Parish Council, that the townsfolk would protect the crops from scavangers in exchange for food. That way the farmers protected their crops and ensured their families continued to eat and the townspeople didn't go hungry. Fortunately, the patients in the hospital also benefitted from this arrangement, as the hospital was also kept supplied with modest amounts of food.

Later that day when she had been feeling better and she had wandered out into the corridor, she had found to her surprise that the entrance to the wing that had her room and three others was firmly locked. When she questioned one of the volunteers as to why, she had given her a knowing look and replied that they had had instructions that she was on no account to leave the hospital until she was quite properly recovered.

"But I'm feeling better," she protested.

The volunteer shook her head and put her arm out to rest on her arm, "you're not well enough to leave yet when the effort of walking a few yards exhausts you so much you start shaking," she contradicted. "Orders is orders I'm afraid," she added, not even attempting to alter her cheerful demeanor.

"Whose orders?," Jo questioned.

"The instructions came from the Police but I believe they were received from a Mr North."

Her heart jumped a little at the sound of his name.

When she was finally well enough to be discharged the next day, she found that she wasn't permitted to leave the hospital immediately. Apparently she needed a Police escort, and she had to wait a further two hours until two armed Police Officers turned up to escort her back to London. And what was more, they had a car and petrol. So a journey which might have taken a day or two on foot was made in less than an hour.

They entered London from the west, and the scale of the fire was immediately obvious. London had been devastated and all she could see for miles was blackness and destruction and even now the scent of burning hung in the air.

Progress through the ruined city proved slow and some twenty minutes into their journey, Jo rather abruptly told the driver to stop. Up ahead of them she could see two figures lying on the side of the road.

One of the officers picked up his gun and got out, with Jo following shortly after.

Jo's throat constricted at the sight of the woman lying unconscious on the ground with a small child clutching at her arm.

She checked her over. There was no pulse and she was quite cold. She had a serious wound to the head which appeared to have been caused by some falling debris. She paused to draw the officers aside and speak quietly to them for a minute.

Beside the woman crouched a fair haired little boy, regarding her with somberly. She wondered what she ought to do with him then. He couldn't be any more than four years of age and was much too young to be left alone.

"What's your name?" she asked, her tone kindly.

"Timothy," he replied, assessing this new stranger. The lady was pretty and she had a nice smile. Her voice was soft and she reminded him of Miss Smith who had taught him at kindergarten.

"You'd best come with us Timothy."

"Mummy," he replied, his eyes darting to his mother, obviously reluctant to leave her.

Jo sighed to herself. How to answer that one. She didn't want to have to break it to him that his mother was dead. She didn't even know how to do that. But she didn't want to lie either.

Eventually she held out her hand and said quietly, "Mummy would have wanted you to come with us. We'll take care of you now."

Timothy regarded her for a moment with his big blue eyes, eyes that were far too serious for a child his age, before silently placing his small palm in hers.

**

An hour later the car pulled up outside a rather unprepossessing office in North London.

Lucas was busy writing a set of notes to brief the Recovery and Reconstruction Committee, a newly established body with representatives from a Parliament, the Police, the Civil Service and the Deputy Mayor of London which would meet for the first time tomorrow, when he looked up to see a familiar face in the doorway.

"Jo," he said abruptly, startled by her sudden reappearance.

He looked from her to the somber little boy who held her hand, his small face regarding Lucas with suspicion.

"This is Lucas," Jo said looking at the boy, and smiling, "he will help us."

She squeezed his hand gently until, after a moment, he returned her smile, and turned to share it with Lucas.

_Thank you all for your Sarah Caulfield killing suggestions. Couldn't fit in everything that was suggested but I did like the idea of her "trying to get into Lucas's pants" as one reviewer put it. So in character! And Lucas hating the idea. And I also beefed up her evil credentials as suggested. And I liked the idea of her working for a US fuel company - the very byword for evil corporates. And she has thrown her two previous husbands off the balcony. Some things never change. _

_So I hope you liked that part and the rest also!_


	44. Chapter 44

Lucas was disarmed by the sweetness of the little boys smile for a moment. And he was even more so by Jo's reappearance.

He smiled at the boy and held out his hand to shake his, "what's your name?" he questioned.

The little boy glanced at Jo, who nodded encouragingly, and then replied, "Timothy."

Lucas smiled at him then looked up at Jo and met her eyes. There were so many things in his head he had wanted to say to her, to tell her, but none of them seemed quite right. And with Timothy here, now was clearly not the right time either. His eyes stayed on her though, and she didn't look away as she would have done before. What to say next he wondered?

Jo settled that question by glancing down at the little boy and announcing that he was hungry and asking did they have any food. Lucas nodded, startled out of his thoughts and told them to follow him. Lucas stayed with them for perhaps ten minutes, his eyes fixed on Jo as she concentrated on first Timothy and then her own food, and then abruptly announced he had to attend to some things, and stood to leave.

After they had eaten Jo took Timothy off to wash him and find something more suitable for him to wear. After playing with him for a little while she asked Mohammed what needed to be done and was given a list of tasks which she began on. Working beside her was an unfamiliar face. A woman in her early sixties who introduced herself as Claire and explained that she had worked at MI6 as an administrative assistant.

Timothy seemed quite happy to entertain himself as Jo worked.

A few hours later she could see that he had stopped moving about and his eyeslids were beginning to droop, so she hastily made up a bed for him to lie on as best she could from a combination of foam padding and blankets.

She tucked him in and the little boy lay there quietly but didn't close his eyes. She asked him if he was tired.

He nodded in reply, and confided that he was scared of going to sleep by himself in case he didn't wake up again like what had happened to Anna and Mummy. She had replied that she was certain he would wake up again and when he did she would be right here beside him.

Even though her words were reassuring, he still seemed doubtful. She sighed and put her hand out to stroke his hair and asked him whether she would like it if she told him a story.

He nodded and she began with a story she remembered from her childhood in a soft voice, wishing as she did so that Lucas was with them. He was really a much better storyteller than she was and she was certain that if Lucas were to start talking, Timothy would be so distracted he would soon forget his worries and fears.

**

Lucas hadn't wanted to work, but they were so close to restoring some kind of order to the chaos that had overtaken the country that to pause now would be an unforgivable error.

He still had to question Sir Tony Elworthy, who had been taken into custody yesterday evening. And after that, no lesser person that Prince William, or as he should more properly be known now, King William, had called on him to attend an audience with him.

The interrogation of Sir Tony proved relatively straightforward and was over within two hours. Lucas emerged, feeling satisfied that, although Sir Tony was as devious as a snake, without Sarah Caulfield, he didn't currently have the necessary support to enact any plans to threaten National Security. That said, they would continue to hold him, while the Police gathered the necessary evidence to press charges of treason.

It took a little under an hour to reach the address where William was housed. Out of necessity, it was a rather inconspicuous modest two storied townhouse on a quiet street, though it was comfortably furnished inside.

Lucas knocked at the door and was greeted by a well built middle aged man - clearly there to protect William's security.

"Name?" he asked sharply.

"Lucas North."

The man nodded and stepped aside, "come in."

Lucas followed him inside the house and into the lounge, where he immediately recognized the two young men lounging on the sofa, engaged in a game of cards. One was tall and fair, the other a lanky redhead. To the side one other older man sat watching them impassively, with a rather disinterested expression on his face. Most likely another security guard, Lucas thought to himself.

William was concentrating intently on his hand, and when his brother placed a card on the table in front of him, he let out a yell of, "cheat! You slippery bugger, I swear you couldn't be trusted to behave honestly even if you were cornered like a rat in a trap and your life depended on it!"

The game then descended into a rather uproarious argument, with both young men using language Lucas hadn't in the least anticipated hearing in a conversation involving a reigning Monarch, but which proved to be both highly entertaining and rather educational.

After a few moments, William finally noticed Lucas standing in the doorway, and grinned at him, getting to his feet. "You must be Lucas North?"

He nodded and came forward to take the hand the young man had extended, while smiling back at him.

"I should warn you not to take on Harry in a game of cards, he's as sly as they come and is currently depriving a sideshow somewhere of their resident shyster."

Harry burst out loudly with, "am not!" and the dissolved into laughter. William soon joined him and Lucas couldn't help but let out a chuckle himself.

"So – the secret service eh?" William began, "I'm always curious to meet your type. You do look the part."

He continued, "I wanted to thank you for stopping the fire. It could so easily have destroyed the entire city. And for your role in taking out Roberts. He was a dangerous man and was he could have easily established a dictatorship which could have lasted for years."

Lucas nodded. "I am an MI5 officer and it was my duty to see that that man was removed from office. His regime left our country in a state of anarchy and his values were opposed to almost everything this country has ever stood for. And there were three other officers who did as much as I did who deserve to be mentioned also."

"Well," William replied, "all I can say is we're lucky to have men like you on our side Lucas and the other three you mentioned too. I will see that they are also suitably rewarded. Anyway I owe you all my thanks not just for the country but for myself too. That man killed my father and my grandparents and they deserved so much better."

The earlier merriment was completely gone from his face, and the sense of loss he felt was palpable. Lucas realized that the young man standing in front of him might be king but he was also a victim of the past few weeks, along with his brother and so many others. Though they seemed to be bearing the loss with a dignitary beyond their years Lucas thought that in that brief moment he had glimpsed the rather lost and bewildered young man William must be inside.

William looked awkward for a moment, and then added hastily, "well I suppose I'd better let you get on your way. I expect there's a lot to do."

Lucas nodded and moved towards the door.

"Lucas," William added as an afterthought, "in a couple of weeks we'll be celebrating my coronation – and then not long after that my wedding. My grandmother always said there's nothing like a royal wedding to bring the country together and I know Kate will make me very happy."

"If she'll have you," Harry muttered.

William smiled briefly, "she will and you know it Harry. Anyway, I'd like to extend an invitation to you to attend these as my friend – that is if you'd like to – and if you have a wife or a girlfriend she's welcome to come too, of course."

"I would be very pleased to attend them. And I will bring someone too."

William smiled, "I'll make sure the invitations are arranged, and that your three colleagues are invited too," he added.

Lucas left the house, the darkness of the night closing around him as he began the long journey back to the office.

**

_William agreed to appear in my story in exchange for a small fee. Prince Harry demanded more, so I had to limit his lines. _

_Thank you Elllie, Holly and everyone else for your reviews. It's always nice to get feedback. _


	45. Chapter 45

**Day Thirty Five: 3.23pm **

Lucas had been gone for three days now, and they were anticipating his return any moment.

Jo had found that time had passed quickly in his absence. There was so much to be done and Jim wasn't around the office much. He tended to appear for an hour or two to check on progress and issue more instructions and then disappear off again to meet up with other senior officials or politicians.

She found she enjoyed the company of the two other MI6 staff she was now working with.

Mohammed proved a quiet young man, but she discovered he had a rather delightful sense of humour when you got to know him. Claire's presence she found somehow reassuring. She was a fairly efficient, practical sort of woman, but kindly too.

And Timothy proved to be more and more engaging the longer she spent with him. She had learned that he was only three, or as he put it "tree." She had had to ask him how twice how old he was. The first time he had replied that he was tree. He had accompanied this by holding up four fingers. She had asked again, trying to get some greater clarity. "Tree," he repeated more firmly this time, nodding his head. She decided it was probably best to take his word for it.

Claire was good with him as well, but it was Jo to whom he was particularly attached.

As the two women took a few minutes to sit down at afternoon tea time and sip their coffees together, Claire commented on this.

"Timothy's really taken to you," she started.

Jo smiled in response to her comment, "I think I've taken to him too, I have to say."

"Did you want children of your own?" she asked, "I know the service can make having a personal life difficult, but you shouldn't let that stand in the way. Sadly, I've seen too many female officers give everything to their career, and realize too late they've missed out on the chance of having a family. I wouldn't want you to make the same mistake."

She looked up to see a rather odd expression on the girl's face and wondered curiously what nerve she had touched. "Jo?" she asked, "is there something wrong? I'm sorry - perhaps I shouldn't have spoken like that. It's not really any of my business."

She shook her head rather hastily, and wondered how she ought to reply. "No you didn't offend me. It's just, well.." she bit her lip.

"well?" the older woman prompted. Whatever was on her mind was clearly causing her some anxiety and it was better off shared.

She fidgeted with her cup and eventually replied, "It's that I'm pregnant. No one knows though so please don't say anything. Everything's so uncertain and difficult still and I think I might have to do it on my own and that worries me."

Claire looked at her for a long moment and then opened her mouth and replied with a single word. "Lucas?"

With over sixty years experience of life and relationships, it was hard to mistake the look that had passed between those two when Jo had arrived.

Her comment left Jo thoroughly shaken. How on earth did she guess that? Was it that obvious that there had been something between them? Did everyone know then?

In the end Jo said nothing in reply, leaving Claire to draw her own conclusions.

She leaned forward to place a hand on Jo's, "I think Lucas will want to be involved. I haven't known him long but he seems a decent man. You should tell him."

"I will," Jo replied reluctantly, "just not yet." She wasn't sure whether Claire was right or not about Lucas wanting to do the decent thing, but either way she didn't want him to have to stand by her only out of a sense of duty when he would rather not.

Claire sighed and returned to sipping her coffee, shaking her head softly.

**

Lucas returned within an hour, looking tired but satisfied that their mission had been a success. His first action on getting back to the office was to go and see Jo.

Lucas could be stealthy and she positively jumped when she felt his hand on her shoulder as she worked quietly at her desk.

"Lucas, you're back then," she exclaimed, trying to collect her thoughts.

"I am. Sorry, I shouldn't have startled you like that," he replied. Now that he thought about it hadn't been such a good idea to sneak up on her like that. Jo had every reason to be jumpy around men and he should really have considered that.

"No, it's fine, I'm fine I mean," she amended hastily.

There was a small noise from the corner of the room and Lucas turned to see Timothy playing with a toy truck and frowned to himself.

"Is that child still here? He should really be in a proper home, not this place. I'll have a word to the Police, they'll organize someone to look after him," he said decisively.

"No," Jo replied, suddenly.

"No?" Lucas repeated, surprised by her response.

"I don't want him to go to strangers, I want him to stay here with us," she saw his expression and then quickly added, hoping she didn't sound quite so naïve, "Eventually I suppose they'll find his grandparents or an aunt or uncle or something, but until then I think he should stay here. He's only a little boy, hasn't he had enough disruption already? Besides who would take him? It's not like the authorities even exist anymore."

"This is no place for a child," Lucas replied. He observed some emotion he couldn't quite place flicker across her face for a moment, to be replaced by a certain coolness in her expression.

"He can play quietly by himself, he's no trouble. You needn't have anything to do with him," she responded, her brow furrowed. If Lucas objected to having Timothy around, it was hardly likely that he would take the news about their baby well.

After a moment she added, "Anyway food is still scarce, who's to say that someone won't take him just to get his share of food and won't end up feeding him? At least if he's with me I can see that he'd fed properly and looked after." Lucas was used to getting his way, but she was not going to compromise on this one.

She stood up and moved to pick the boy up in her arms and stood facing him defiantly. Timothy clearly sensed the tension between the two of them and twined his arms about the back of her neck then rested his head against her shoulder. There was something in that movement and in the way Jo looked with the little boy in her arms that softened him.

"Alright," Lucas replied after a moment. Though he had been right that this was no place for a child, she did have a point. Food was still very limited and it was quite possible someone would see the boy simply as a way to get a little extra food and neglect him entirely. "You can put him down then, I'm not going to wrestle him from your arms," he added, his mouth twitching.

Jo nodded and allowed herself to smile briefly as she bent to place Timothy on the floor. She could still feel a degree of friction between them though, and searched for a more neutral topic. "How did the visits go?," she questioned.

"Everything went according to plan," Lucas replied. "It was hectic though," he said with a sigh.

At that moment Jim returned to the room and asked Lucas the same question. Upon hearing the reply he slapped Lucas on the back and announced that they ought to celebrate. He departed from the room and returned with a bottle of champayne and five glasses. Claire, who had been sitting quietly in the background came forward to do the honours while Jim went in search of Mohammed.

"Lucas? Can I pour you one?" Claire asked.

Lucas nodded and smiled, leaning forward to take his glass, wondering as he did so where exactly Jim might have managed to get hold of this stuff from.

"Jo?" she offered, holding out a glass, and then hastily retracted it and added, "Ah, right, I forgot - you better not." Almost as soon as she had said it, she looked flustered by her faux pas and drew in a breath with an "oh, sorry," as her eyes darted towards Lucas.

Lucas observed Jo's startled expression as his eyes fell on her with a puzzled look. She looked almost guilty as she met his eyes briefly, and then quickly looked away and moved away from them to ask Timothy about his game.


	46. Chapter 46

Once Jim had reentered the room and poured Mohammed - who was a fairly lax sort of Muslim - a glass too, he looked around the room and enquired loudly whether Jo wanted a drink, observing that everyone else was catered for. This then led to another scene in which she was once again reluctantly the centre of attention and was forced to politely decline his offer while he pressed her to accept a glass.

She could feel Claire's eyes on her and the way that Lucas was watching her was rather unnerving. The atmosphere suddenly seemed stifling and it was as if she couldn't breathe. After a minute she picked up Timothy, and excused herself saying that she thought he needed something to eat. Timothy didn't help her escape by protesting loudly "no hungry," as she collected him. Her cheeks burning pink she ignored his comments and whisked him away but not in time to miss overhearing Jim observe, in a far from hushed tone, that in his opinion something was definitely up with that girl.

She slipped next door to the kitchenette and ended up pouring herself a glass of water, seeing as Timothy again took the opportunity to tell her that he was "no hungry," and then shortly after took him back to her desk. There at least it was quiet and nobody would stare at her. She picked up her pen and tried to concentrate on her notes outlining further actions they needed to take tomorrow.

But Timothy wouldn't settle this time and after spending a few moments on the floor, he got to his feet and moved across the room to stand silently by her chair.

Lucas had finally located where Jo had gotten to and approached the door quietly, watching the scene inside.

Jo turned to look at Timothy standing beside her and rewarded him with a dazzling smile, then picked him up and sat him on her knee where he sat quietly while she continued writing notes. The past few minutes had been upsetting and it was comforting to have him with her.

Lucas observed this little scene and thought to himself that it was curious that children, even from a very young age, had a certain instinct to know who to trust. Timothy had chosen well when he decided to place his confidence in Jo.

For a second his mind wandered and he thought about a time when he and Elizabeta had spoken of having children. He had wanted to try as soon as they were married, thinking of the day when he could hold a little boy or girl in his arms. But she had insisted they wait, wanting to focus on her career instead. And then eventually that dream had faded, along with so many others, in the icy coldness of eight years in a Russian prison cell.

It was a surprise to him to find that that was something he still wanted now as badly as he had all those years ago. But he needed confirmation one way or the other from Jo. And she seemed determined to avoid the question.

Jo looked up to see Lucas in the doorway. "What's this about you not drinking?," he questioned

She looked distinctly uncomfortable and started fidgeting with her pen. Lucas looked annoyed already and she was positive he would be very cross when he found out the truth. She didn't want to lie outright because he would find out about it sometime and, well, that might make him even crosser. And she couldn't say she didn't feel like drinking which had at least a little bit of truth in it because Claire had already put her foot in things so badly – what with the whole "better not" reference, which implied it was about more than her preferences.

It was just that she would so much rather not tell him now. She needed some time to work up the courage and think of a way to break it to him softly. Now was not the right time, what with Timothy on her knee, but she could hardly make an escape for the very same reason. In the end, she just sat there staring at her notes, looking uncomfortable with nothing to say for herself.

Lucas sighed and tried again, "Why did Claire say you had better not have anything to drink?"

"I," Jo began, trying to think of a decent excuse, then closed her mouth, unable to think of a reply, while Lucas waited.

"Yes?" he prompted impatiently.

"Nothing," she finished awkwardly, moving to put Timothy down, "I think I should join everyone else now. I expect Timothy would like that."

"But you haven't answered my question," he replied, pacing across the room. He turned suddenly to face her again, "I have an idea of my own about why she might have said that."

Jo didn't want to prompt him so she didn't reply. She didn't like his interrogation technique. The intensity with which he attacked the question was nothing short of intimidating.

"How long has it been since we made love exactly? Do you recall?" Lucas asked, watching her intently.

"Not precisely" Jo murmered, after a moment, trying to quell the blush which threatened to turn her pink. She didn't like where this conversation appeared to be heading and added softly, "Lucas, I don't really think this is an appropriate conversation to have with a child present."

"Yes, I suppose you're correct," he replied, and nodded and then unexpectedly moved forward to take hold of her arm and escort her from the room.

"Lucas, what are you..?" Jo protested.

"You said, quite rightly, that we shouldn't have this conversation in front of Timothy, so I'm moving it elsewhere," he said, hustling her into the room next door and shutting the door with a bang. "And now that we are in a more private place, let us return to the question at hand," he started, prowling from one side of the room to the other, before turning to face her again. "So you said you don't recall how long it had been since that night we were together at the Castle. Fortunately, I have an impeccable memory and recall quite accurately how long it has been. It has been almost exactly four weeks since I held you in my arms that night."

Jo waited and watched him uncertainly. He seemed to know about the baby but how he would react she couldn't predict. One thing was for sure and that was that his style of questioning was making her uneasy.

"And I expect that, in those four weeks you haven't gotten your period. Is that the case?"

His words were innocuous enough, but he made it sound like he was the Sheriff in a Hollywood western and she was being accused of grand larceny in several States.

"It's really none of your business Lucas," Jo replied, sounding annoyed. She had had enough of his games and he could practice his skills at extracting intelligence on someone else, "I'm not a criminal and you can quit trying to intimidate me with your interrogation technique. Personally, I find it all rather irritating," she added, before turning on her heel and heading towards the door.

"Jo," Lucas began, catching her arm again, but this time his voice was more gentle, "I just want to know where we stand. I didn't mean to intimidate you, I guess I did start to sound a bit like I was at work but that's just the way I've been trained to ask questions. Please - will you just tell me if you're pregnant?"

Jo was quite taken aback by this sudden change in attitude and watched him for a moment warily before nodding in reply to his question.

"So that's a yes then?" Lucas asked to confirm.

"Yes," she replied quietly.

"You're not cross then?" she asked hesitantly, "I know it's not a good time to be having children," she started.

"Certainly not," he replied brusquely. "I don't know why you imagined I would ever be cross with you. In fact I rather like the idea."

"Really?" she asked, a little surprised by his comment.

"Yes really," he replied firmly, and smiled at her.

Just then they heard a quiet knock at the door and then Claire's voice calling, "Jo, Lucas - are you in there?"

"Yes," Lucas replied loudly, striding towards the door to open it.

Claire stood at the door smiling apologetically, "Sorry but Jim wants everyone back in the control room for a debrief."

"Back to the madhouse it is then," said Lucas smiling as he paused to wait for Jo to come out of the room.

"After you," he indicated politely, placing his hand on her back to guide her through the doorway.

Claire watched the two of them and came to the conclusion that Lucas must know about the baby, given that he was now looking inordinately pleased with himself. And if she wasn't mistaken he was not only pleased about the fact that he was shortly to be a father, but also more than a little in love with Jo and she with him. Which was, she reflected, wholly unsurprising, given that Jo was both quite beautiful and as sweet natured a girl as she had ever met and Lucas was devilishly handsome and, had she been thirty years younger, she was quite sure that she would have immediately developed quite an embarrassingly girlish crush if he so much as smiled at her.

**

_Ha ha Lucas is all in character with the interrogation technique. He should really leave his day job at home when dealing with his personal life but no!_

_Thanks for all your reviews. XYZ nice to hear from you, I'm glad you've been enjoying the story. _


	47. Chapter 47

Jo found it difficult to concentrate during the debriefing. She was pleased that Lucas seemed happy about the baby. That was a weight off her mind, but now that issue had been resolved she wondered what would happen now.

There was still plenty of work to do but Jim had announced at the end of the session that from tomorrow the Recovery and Reconstruction Committee had mandated that the recovery effort step up a gear and that they would be moving to a new location and would be joined by a number of new colleagues recruited from the Police, the old civil service and voluntary organisations.

Their new base would be some ten miles away from their present location and they would form part of the Office of Recovery Response and Reconstruction. As soon as the new title was announced, Lucas wasted no time in dubbing it ORRR, which he pondered sounded rather indecisive. Jim laughed and replied that he had been asked to head the new office for the time being and that Lucas could be certain there would be nothing indecisive about it.

When they emerged from the briefing Lucas strolled up to Jo casually and announced that he had forgot to mention that he had met Prince William just before he had left and that he had invited them both to attend his coronation and wedding.

"His wedding?" Jo squeaked.

Lucas grinned, "That's right. You got the exclusive. If there are still tabloid journalists out there they'll be beating a path to your door."

"An invitation to a Royal Wedding – that is exciting. And a coronation too," Jo replied, looking excited, and then after a moment her smile vanished and she began to look distinctly anxious. "Oh - but I have nothing to wear and I won't know what to say to him if I meet him. And when are they happening? I might be too fat to be able to squeeze in to anything and I really don't know if I'll fit in at all…" she added, starting to sound slightly panicked by the whole idea.

Lucas smoothly interrupted her mid stream before she could add anything else to her catalogue of worries, "Whatever you wear you'll look lovely and whatever you say will I'm sure be quite correct and I'm expect he'll think you're charming. After all, it's not like you're Katie Price or something. The coronation is only three weeks away and the wedding a month later so I doubt you'll look very pregnant either. And I imagine things will be somewhat less formal than they used to be in light of recent events. "

Jo looked at him for a moment doubtfully, "so you think he'll like me and I won't embarrass myself then?"

"I'm positive he'll like you and I've never seen you act in a way that would embarrass yourself yet Jo so I hardly imagine you would at the wedding."

"Oh, that's good" she replied sounding relieved, and started to smile at him. "Its all quite exciting, don't you think?," she asked.

Lucas shrugged, amused by her response, "I suppose it will be interesting."

"Yesss," Jo replied, her voice still breathy with excitement. A happy smile lit up her face as she began to picture the wedding in her head. She sighed, thinking to herself that it would all be so terribly romantic.

Lucas couldn't help but smile to himself when he observed the expression on her face and he tried to imagine quite what was going through her head. She was clearly off in some fantasy land where romance and happily ever after reigned supreme. He let her dwell there for a few minutes before bringing her back to earth.

"Now back to the matter of the baby," he began.

"What?," she replied looking distracted. "Oh yes, the baby."

"You'll need to make sure that you take care of yourself, and get enough rest," Lucas said firmly.

"Yes I will, "Jo replied. "And I'm sure you'll be checking up on me if I don't anyway," she added with a sigh.

"That's right," Lucas nodded, and then added suddenly as a thought crossed his mind, "the baby – it is mine and not Rob's?" he questioned, looking irritated by the idea. The thought of that devious lawyer with his Jo just made his blood boil. If he met Rob, he thought to himself it would be tremendously satisfying to punch him in the face, though he supposed that unfortunately he couldn't really get away with that.

"Yes, of course its yours Lucas," Jo replied, exasperated. "I told you that Rob and I only went out twice, what kind of person do you think I am?"

"It was more a reflection on him, really - I mean he is a lawyer. I expect he's far too smooth talking in a slimy, conniving sort of a way and could probably sell ice to Eskimos at an exceptionally inflated price so talking you into bed wouldn't be too much of a challenge," he added, looking annoyed. "Just as well – the last thing the world needs right now is the spawn of a lawyer to add to our troubles."

"You needn't be so offensive," Jo replied, sounding irritated. "That would be my child too, if it had been his. And I don't know quite what you have against lawyers or Rob, he's really not a bad person at all. I'm sure you'd realize that once you got to know him."

"I don't like lawyers in general, and I don't like that lawyer in particular," he declared. "I don't want to get to know him and in my opinion he knows you quite well enough already and there should be no more getting to know you going on at all. End of story," he finished, with finality.

Jo sighed. "You always think it's up to you to lay down the law," she muttered tiredly.

"It's not a bad thing. My judgment is usually sound," he replied, grinning.

Their conversation was interrupted when Jim reentered the room and beckoned them towards him. "I have a job for you both," he started. "There's been some unrest over at the military camp near Maidstone. About a hundred Police are on their way but I want some of our people over there too. I don't think it's likely to turn violent but we need to act quickly before the situation becomes serious."

Lucas nodded, his face serious, "of course - we'll go immediately."

Jim replied, "ok – take the car and get out there quickly, it's about five miles outside the town on the southwest side."

The drive out there was less than an hour and Jo's anxiousness about what they might find at the camp made her quieter than normal. As they neared their destination she commented that things were so much more difficult without radio or mobile phone communication.

"They are," Lucas agreed, glancing over at her.

"In the old days there was always Malcolm or Ben or someone at the office to call in to and give us an update. I miss that," she said softly.

Then she added so quietly that her voice was hardly more than breath but he heard every word so full of regret and sadness as clear as if she had shouted them at in his ear, "I miss Malcolm. He could have been with us now still. Why did you have to take him away from us like that Lucas? He wouldn't have hurt anyone. He was so gentle."

He looked over at her to see her lip tremble as she continued, "I remember one time just after I came back from leave Nick Selwood from Section C – you know the one, talks quite loudly, drives that expensive Mercedes, asked me out in the cafeteria and I said no thank you and he said that I was I was a stuck up little tart which upset me a little bit and Malcolm heard about it and he came and gave me a talk about how I wasn't to mind what other people said then later that day when I came back to my desk at the end of the day he'd written me a poem to cheer me up and it said that if eyes were the windows to your soul then I must have the most beautiful heart of all and that the saying must be right because I did and that I must always keep my chin up because I was British and that was what we always do and I should try to think of a time when things would get easier."

What Malcolm had said about Jo was true, Lucas thought to himself. Poetic but true. She was quite the loveliest thing he had ever encountered – inside as well as out. And he had had enough of hiding the truth from her. He debated with himself for the hundredth time whether he ought to betray his friend's confidence and finally came to a different decision.

"I killed Malcolm because he asked me to. I didn't want to do it but he didn't want to keep going the way things were. I'm sorry," he said simply.

"Malcolm asked you too?," Jo repeated, her voice shocked. "Why didn't you tell me? I would have understood."

"I don't know, " Lucas replied tiredly, "at first I thought about doing it but then I thought it would just upset you. And then after it was done it just seemed wrong. It was between Malcolm and I – an agreement between us. He didn't say anything about telling you and then I thought about it and thought maybe he didn't want you to know – that you might think less of him."

"I would have understood why you did it Lucas," Jo replied, watching his face. "And about Malcolm too – about his reasons. I could have accepted that - and I wouldn't have thought any less of him," she added fiercely, "I'm not a hypocrite."

She could still remember, though she preferred not to, a time when she had asked Adam to do the same for her. In the weeks after that she had found herself sometimes wishing so badly that Adam hadn't cared for her as much as he did and had the nerve to place the value of the information in her head above the value of her life.

So it turned out that she had been wrong about Lucas. He wasn't a killer or a bad friend. In fact he was brave, and had had the courage to do something she wasn't sure she could have done. And his intentions were only to help Malcolm. In fact, she couldn't really think of a time when he hadn't acted like a gentleman towards her or looked out for her welfare – except maybe when they had fought over Malcolm's death. But then she had misjudged him – though he had done nothing to clear up the misunderstanding, stubborn as he was. She supposed she could understand his reasons though.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't tell you how it was. It was a difficult thing to do," Lucas said, sighing, "- but something I had to do for a friend."

They were approaching the camp and Lucas followed the turn indicating that the base was two miles to the right.

"Would you kill me too then? If I asked you to?" she asked suddenly, as they took the corner.

"You? No," Lucas replied, startled by her question, but keeping his eyes on the road.

"Oh," she replied, letting out her breath, disappointed to hear he didn't consider her a friend.

"Because I'm not a friend like Malcolm you mean," she began, wanting to know why he would do that for Malcolm and not for her.

"No - you're not. You're a different story," Lucas replied sharply.

"So you don't think of us as friends then," Jo persisted, wanting him to clarify what their relationship actually was. If he didn't care for her at all then let him finally just say so and be done with it.

"No I don't," he replied firmly, then added. "But that's not the reason I wouldn't do it. In your case I wouldn't do it because I love you."

**

_Finally!_

_And ahahaha I do love it how Lucas has a secret desire to punch Rob. Bad Lucas, very bad._


	48. Chapter 48

"You love me?" she repeated, shaken. "Really? No you don't, surely," she finished, the disbelief evident in her voice.

"You know I know my mind pretty well at my age," Lucas replied, his eyes crinkling with amusement.

"But – why?," she asked confused at this sudden turn of events.

"I don't know the precise reason," Lucas replied coolly, "maybe its because the sound of your voice is like music to my jaded ears or that when you smile your face lights up like a beam of sunshine illuminating a gloomy chapel or the fact that you are possibly the sweetest, most beautiful thing I ever met."

Jo stared at him silently, startled by his words.

"Well?' Lucas asked brusquely, his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel.

"Well what?" Jo repeated, wondering where he was going now.

"Well do you love met then?" he asked, impatiently waiting for her reply.

"Oh. Yes." When it was out of her mouth she took a breath, surprised by her words. But now she had said it, it was obvious that it was true and yet she had never noticed it before. She loved him. She could see now that her worries for him weren't so much about the baby or about being left on her own, but more about the way she felt about him. She didn't know when exactly her feelings had changed - sometime over the past few weeks perhaps, but now she was in no doubt that she was in love with him.

"Good," he said and smiled. And that was all.

They pulled in to the driveway of the camp and began the drive up towards the base. Jo wondered what would happen next now that things had changed between them. She watched Lucas closely as they drove, trying to anticipate what he might do now.

He said nothing. Her eyes took in the two dozen or so Police cars parked at the military base and the police officers milling around and she considered what might be happening inside the barracks.

**

_Just a short chapter this time. More to come in a couple of days. _


	49. Chapter 49

**Day Thirty Five: 6: 28pm **

Lucas hastily pulled the car to a stop and then loaded his gun. "Stay here," he ordered.

"Lucas," Jo protested, "I should come too."

"It's against protocol for you to be out in the field now, and you know it. I don't want you exposed to danger. You're to stay here until I've assessed the situation."

"And twiddle my thumbs I suppose," Jo replied resentfully.

"If need be," Lucas answered brusquely, before shutting the car door and striding off in the direction of the barracks.

**

After thirty minutes of waiting in the car with no word from Lucas, Jo was indeed forced to resort to twiddling her thumbs. What on earth was happening in there she wondered. She was pleased that so far there had been no sound of gunshots or similar but she could hear occasional shouts coming from the hall in the middle of the complex.

After what seemed an age, Lucas finally returned.

"What's going on?" Jo questioned anxiously.

"They haven't been fed for the past two days."

"Oh," Jo replied. "I thought the Police organized that all the military camps would be provisioned."

"They did, but something must have gone wrong in this case. I don't know what it is – bribery, corruption or simply instructions not being followed. I'm trying to get to the bottom of it. Anyway – they're demanding to see William and the Prime Minister. I think we need to get them. The moods pretty volatile – for the moment I've managed to keep them calm and promised them they can see them soon, and that we'll bring some supplies in. The Police have offered to organize for a truck to bring some provisions in shortly, but I want you to go and get William and the PM, and bring some extra Police along with you."

Jo looked at him wide eyed for a moment, then nodded, "ok, sure, I'll be as quick as I can."

**

It was precisely three hours later that Jo returned with King William in the car, along with two of his bodyguards.

The Prime Minister was following them in the car behind, and a Police escort vehicle made up the rear of the convoy. A further two Police vehicles followed some five minutes behind them.

Once they reached the base, they waited a few minutes for the Police to arrive, and then Jo went inside to let Lucas know they had arrived.

It was easy to identify where the troops were from the noise. When she opened the door to the hall, the sight that greeted her was somewhat intimidating. Around two hundred sets of eyes turned to stare at her as she entered the hall, their angry faces illuminated by the lamps dispersed throughout the hall. They were dressed in the khaki uniform of the army and some were armed.

At first there was silence, but then someone whistled, and another called, "looking for a little fun darlin? Cos I'm your man," which provoked an outburst of laughter.

She ignored them and made her way towards Lucas, who was in the middle of the room with around 40 armed police officers looking remarkably cool calm and collected. Jo whispered in his ear, "they're here – do you want to talk to them?"

Lucas nodded, and left the hall to hastily brief the two arrivals on the situation. Ten minutes later they returned with King William and the Prime Minister in tow.

The entry of King William, who they had seen only four days earlier provoked loud cheering. He was clearly popular with the troops.

Once they reached the centre of the room, William looked to the Prime Minister, who indicated that he should speak first.

"It is a pleasure to be back amongst you only a few days after my last visit," he began, "though it is unfortunate to hear that things have not gone smoothly in our absence. I can assure you that your new Prime Minister gave express instructions that all military bases were to be paid and properly provisioned. Our understanding is that this has not occurred in this case and for that I am sorry." A round of applause followed this comment. "The Prime Minister has ordered that food be delivered as soon as possible to your camp, and we anticipate that it will arrive within the next hour." He paused and waited for the cheers to die down, "Prime Minister do you wish to add some comments?"

"Yes indeed I do. It was my earnest desire to make sure that you were properly provisioned and we are, as yet, unsure why this has not occurred. As the King has said, provisions have been dispatched and should be with you shortly. And you can be assured that in the future we will see that you are well fed and provisioned. Along with the rest of the citizens of this country, I am all too aware of the debt we owe to the servicemen and women in this country, who bravely put their lives on the line in the course of duty. I can only thank you and ask that you extend us your patience while we sort this situation out to reach a satisfactory conclusion."

The Prime Minister stepped down from the podium in the centre of the hall to the sound of clapping and shook the hand of the senior army officer beside him. Lucas nodded to both the Prime Minister and the King and led them forward out of the hall. Their progress was slow, as the soldiers surged forward to shake their hands along the way. Jo followed behind them, trying not to attract attention. She wasn't wholly successful as the boisterous mood led one of the soldiers to grab her and kiss her before she could wriggle away from him. Several metres in front of them, Lucas turned to see Jo trapped in the embrace of a rather burly soldier and frowned, then quickly made his way to her side, and separated her from the soldier, announcing firmly, "the lady is not for kissing, I'm afraid. She's already taken."

Outside Jo breathed a sigh of relief, as Lucas issued instructions that the Prime Minister and King should return to London, with Jo and their escort. Around them the troops filed out of the hall and back to their barracks.

On hearing that she was to return to London, Jo protested that she wanted to stay here to help Lucas and see that the food was distributed fairly.

"You're going back with them," Lucas replied, shaking his head, before turning away to talk to the Prime Minister.

Lucas' attitude irritated her. She wanted to stay and make sure that the situation was properly resolved before returning to London, to see the job through the same as Lucas.

"I'm not going," she replied coolly, "and you can't make me."

Lucas stopped his discussion and looked towards her, irritated. "Fine," he replied shortly, clearly not pleased with her response. "Stay then, but I'll watch you." With nearly two hundred soldiers around, some of whom had consumed a fair amount of alcohol, Jo would clearly need some supervision. And if he wasn't mistaken, pregnancy was already beginning to have an effect on her, giving her a certain glow which made her look even more lovely than usual, but which could easily spell trouble in an environment like this.

After the Prime Minister and William had departed, Jo and Lucas returned to their car to wait for the supplies to arrive. Around them, the Police Officers were milling about and joking with each other or sitting in their cars as they waited.

Inside the car things were silent, as Lucas ran through the arrangements he would make after the supplies arrived in his head.

Jo watched him furtively. They hadn't talked since their earlier discussion and the silence was making her uncomfortable.

She reflected that it was so difficult to predict what Lucas might do next and that being in love with him was clearly going to be hard work.

Half an hour later the truck finally arrived, packed with food and water. A few minutes later soldiers began emerging from their barracks, cheering excitedly and running towards it. Lucas, Jo and the Police had a difficult job keeping order as they dispensed the supplies, and it took well over twenty minutes before everyone had been fed.

After the truck had been emptied Lucas, Jo and the Police regrouped in the carpark. The Police announced they would send half of their cars back to London, with the rest staying until tomorrow to make sure things remained calm. Lucas announced he would stay overnight too, then looked at Jo and asked, "will you go back to London now? With the Police?"

She smiled and nodded, "yes," happy to return now the operation was largely complete. Lucas smiled, "I'll see you tomorrow then," then added so softly that everyone, including Jo, failed to hear him, "my love."

**

_Nearly at the end of the story – only a couple more chapters to go. _


	50. Chapter 50

**Day Thirty Six: 3:04pm **

When Lucas arrived at the headquarters of the new Office of Recovery Response and Reconstruction, the first thing he encountered was Timothy playing with some lego blocks inside the entrance to the building. On seeing Lucas the little boy got to his feet smiling and held up the rather basic car he had created making "vrrm, vrrm" noises.

"That is a rather good car," Lucas began approvingly, grinning at the little boy, picking it up to carefully inspect it. The front headlight, which was rather curiously attached, immediately fell off as he did so.

"Ahh," said Lucas, "there is a trick with that," he said, as he picked up the piece that had fallen to the floor and replaced it so that it fitted perfectly, then returned it to Timothy with a smile.

Timothy cradled it in his hands preciously as if were made of gold. Lucas grinned and whipped a small bar wrapped in silver out of his pocket. "Do you like chocolate?" he began.

Timothy's eyes lit up and he started to hop from one foot to the other with anticipation, nodding his head excitedly.

"You do," Lucas replied, laughing, as he handed over the chocolate to Timothy, who consumed it rapidly, leaving his mouth smeared with chocolate. After he had finished he remembered his manners and looked up at Lucas. "Tank you," he announced gravely.

"No problem," Lucas replied. "Perhaps you would like to show me inside now?"

Timothy nodded and put one small grubby chocolatey hand in Lucas' to take him upstairs, Lucas slowing his strides to match Timothy's little legs.

A few minutes later they reached the top floor of the new offices were the control room was located. Jim was inside, pacing back and forth amongst a group of unfamiliar faces. To the side of the room he could see Mohammed and Claire was positioned with two middle aged women near the window.

Jim glanced up to see Lucas at the door, "you're back," he exclaimed. " And with a helper I see. How is everything in Maidstone?" he enquired.

"Fine," Lucas said shortly. "The issue with the food's been resolved. One of the army staff responsible for dispensing the food was the culprit and decided to make a little extra cash by selling supplies on the side but we've given him his marching orders, and put in an honest replacement. The senior officer's been instructed to keep an eye on him and to report any problems to us immediately."

"Good, well as you can see we have plenty of hands on deck now," Jim replied.

"I see that. How many staff do we have here?"

"A little over 50 with more to come in the next couple of days."

Lucas nodded, "that's positive."

"Yes," Jim replied after a moment, "and I think in light of that that you should have the rest of the day off. There's still lots to be done but plenty of helpers now and I don't expect everything can be accomplished at once. As they say Rome wasn't built in a day."

"I'm happy to help if there's more to be done," Lucas began.

"Nonsense – I insist you take a break, I expect you were up half the night. And tell Jo to knock off too, she was back late last night too," Jim replied shortly.

"Alright," Lucas replied.

"Oh and Lucas - I have a place you can stay. A six safehouse. There's no power but its clean and secure and quite tidy and its just near the pumphouse in Southwark which will be one of the first places to have water restored in the city. The taps should be working within a week or two."

"I appreciate the offer. Could Jo stay there too?"

"Sure, makes sense" he replied, shrugging.

"Where is she by the way?," Lucas asked.

Jim sighed tiredly, "somewhere round – I don't know precisely where. Maybe the little boy will know – he seems rather attached to her."

Lucas turned to Timothy who had a finger in his mouth and was sucking happily away at the last of the chocolate, "do you know where Jo is, little fellow?"

Timothy nodded and led the way down the corridor to a small room on the west of the building where Jo sat with three other workers.

Lucas entered, leaning against the door with his hands resting in his pockets, "hello," he said with a grin as she started at his voice.

"Oh, hi," she replied, feeling suddenly nervous at his reappearance.

"Jim says you're to stop work and take the rest of the afternoon off and he's given me the same instructions."

"Oh, but there's still lots to be done here…" she started.

"There always is, isn't there," Lucas said with a sigh and walked over to her, and ignoring the presence of other staff in the room placed his hand on her check and whispered "but then there's you and I, and I think we deserve a little time too. It can't always be about work."

Jo looked down flustered at his touch, and then looked to the window where a movement had caught her eye. "What have you been doing to your face now?," she questioned, looking at Timothy.

"Choc- late," Timothy replied with a self satisfied grin.

"Really – and where did you get that from then?" she asked, frowning.

Timothy's eyes darted to Lucas as he considered whether he was now in trouble, then pointed a finger towards Lucas.

"Lucas gave it to you did he?" she asked and was rewarded with a nod.

"Special favours is it then?" she questioned, looking towards Lucas with amusement.

Lucas grinned and laughed, "indeed. He's an engaging little chap, and I thought he would enjoy it. I don't expect he's had anything quite so wicked for a while."

"Anyway," he added, getting back to the matter at hand, "could Claire take him for the afternoon? I wanted to talk to you."

Jo watched him for a moment then nodded, her stomach all in knots at the thought of spending time alone with him. "Give me a few minutes to go and find her," she replied, moving towards Timothy to take his hand and go in search of Claire.

She returned alone a few minutes later. Lucas took the lead and they walked in silence out of the building.

When they reached the front door, Lucas kept walking. Jo followed, uncertain where they were heading. She wished Lucas wasn't given to such strange, uncommunicative moods and would tell her what was on her mind.

After a further ten minutes of silence, she opened her mouth, willing herself to have the courage to say what was on her mind.

"Lucas do you really love me? I know you said it yesterday but then after that it was like it never happened. I don't know if you even meant it or if I was dreaming."

The sun was high in the sky and it caught the gold in her hair and the blue of her eyes.

"I meant it. I don't say things I don't mean," Lucas replied shortly. "And you won't be in any doubt of how I feel after this evening," he added, giving her a look that left her with butterflies in her stomach.

And then he was reminded about the baby, and added more softly, "We can talk some more in a moment, I just wanted to show you something."

"Ok," she replied hesitantly, wondering if her question had annoyed him.

They resumed their walk with Lucas in the lead. After a moment he added casually that he had arranged for some toys to be delivered tomorrow for Timothy, along with some new clothes for both her and Timothy.

"Thank you," Jo replied, surprised that Lucas would have had time to consider details such as that, considering how busy he had been.

But then it was difficult to anticipate what Lucas might do next. She had been right earlier when she thought that it was clearly going to be hard work being in love with him. And yet – she had seen that through his actions he always put others first, he always looked out for her welfare and that of other people's and that made her feel that her heart had been right all along – that despite the fact that he could be abrupt and strangely uncommunicative, that she was right to love him after all.

"That," Lucas announced suddenly, jolting her out of her thoughts as he pointed to an old stone building, "was what I wanted to show you. Do you like it?" he asked, watching her closely.

"I do – it's lovely," Jo replied, surveying the building. "Really lovely – is it a church?"

"It is," he replied, nodding, "A very early church in the Romanesque style, dating from around 1030, one of the oldest churches in greater London and built before the Norman Conquest. Shall we have a look inside?"

"Yes," she replied happily, "I'd like that."

The church was a pale sandy colour with beautiful curved arches inside and a mosaic floor. Light streamed through stained glass panels of every colour that were obviously a later addition.

"It's so peaceful," Jo breathed, 'and beautiful."

She turned to Lucas. His eyes seemed to burn into hers and it was like she was seeing him for the first time. He was so handsome and she felt suddenly shy.

"Will you marry me?" he asked suddenly

"What?" she stared at him, her eyes widening.

"I said will you marry me?" he repeated, his eyes intent on her.

Lucas knew that now was not the time to hesitate. In this world to survive you needed to be brave and bold and to seek your fortune rather to leave it to chance. The future would be what he made of it. And he wanted Jo to be his future.

"I – you mean once this is over, sometime in the future?," she asked, startled by his question.

"No. Here. Now. Today," he replied decisively. Delays were all very well for Royal weddings but theirs could be done quite simply with a minimum of fuss. And with all possible speed. "The Minister lives next door – I met him earlier and he could do it today."

"Lucas - I don't want you to marry me because you feel you have to because of the baby –", Jo started

"It's not because of the baby, its because of you," Lucas replied impatiently. "Because I want you to belong to me and there is no one else for me and there never will be. Only you."

And that was the truth. At first he had thought that what he felt for her was purely sexual. That he was attracted to her, that he wanted her and that was it. That was easy enough to explain. Jo, though she might try to ignore it, was too beautiful for men not to notice. And he was a man, and what was worse a man who had been shut away from women for eight years.

The attraction was part of it – it was true, but not the whole.

He had realized her was in love with her that morning when he had woken to find her lying in his arms. All he could hear was the patter of the rain against the window and then if he listened more closely the whisper of her breathing. He liked the way she would turn every now and the sound of a soft murmer escape would escape from her lips and he could tell that she was happy in her dreams. He imagined that her dreams hadn't always been restful, but he had been pleased that they were now. There was a sweetness about her that made him think he might do just about anything to make her smile, to see that she was happy. He had imagined at the time many more lazy mornings to come spent in each others arms and he that had reminded him for a second of Elizabeta and then he had noticed with some surprise that it didn't hurt to think about her anymore because he had Jo instead. And when he was with her he didn't want Elizabeta anymore. Jo was all he desired – and more.

He watched her, waiting for her response.

Jo considered objecting, saying that it was too soon, too sudden, that she needed time to think. But then she looked at Lucas and knew that maybe it was too soon but that didn't matter. Her future belonged with him.

Her head told her that she should say yes too. These past few weeks had shown her that she was tougher than she had thought, but that with Lucas by her side she was stronger still. She didn't know what the future would bring but without Lucas it was likely that in the coming months pregnancy would make her more vulnerable – she needed Lucas's strength and his protection. And more than that she loved him and without Lucas tomorrow and the next day would just stretch out before her like a void of endless nothingness. Only Lucas could change that – only he could make her happy.

And when she looked into his eyes in that moment all she could see was their child. Perhaps a little girl with his dark hair and somber blue eyes. She would be serious but thoughtful and kind, and she would have something of herself about her too, like perhaps her mother's smile. Or else a little boy – handsome and tall like his father. And clever too. And she would love their child because they reminded her of Lucas.

She leaned in to kiss him and replied softly, "Yes. I will marry you Lucas North."

**

_Sigh, ah the romance. So do you like? _

_Still one more chapter to go! _


	51. Chapter 51

_I loaded the last chapter a couple of days ago so check that you have read that before this one…_

**Day Thirty Six: 5:57pm**

For their wedding Jo didn't have a white dress only a pale green summer dress she had borrowed from one of the new employees from work. Lucas wore a borrowed navy suit that had seen better days but still managed to look dashing. And they didn't have everyone there, or even their families. But they had each other, and the best wishes of Claire and a couple of their new employees to sanction their marriage and wait nervously to see happy couple joined together, and little Timothy to kiss the bride. And that was more than enough for them both - more than anyone could ask for these days.

The left the church and emerged into the last light of the day. Their appearance attracted a few onlookers who were curious to encounter a wedding in such times and stayed to stare at the couple. Timothy shyly clung on to Jo's dress, seeming flustered by the situation. She leaned down to take his hand and then after a moment Lucas bent down to pick the little boy up in his arms and carry him along with them.

Someone, somehow had managed to find a camera and take their picture as the three of them stood in the church grounds – Lucas tall dark and handsome, Jo as fair and lovely as any storybook princess and little Timothy, beaming with the excitement of the occasion. Once the picture was taken the film was passed to them to keep and develop sometime in the future when such things became normal again. When Lucas peered into the camera at the shot he was struck by the way three of them looked so very right together and the fact that, though she had no white dress and there were no frills or fuss, he had never seen a more beautiful bride than his new wife.

Lucas looked to his wife as she stood beside him. "Joanna North," she repeated to herself, contemplating the strangeness of it all after having been Joanna Portman for twenty seven years. Lucas smiled when he heard the sound of the name of her lips. He had thought she might opt to keep her old name but after a moment's indecision which came about as a result of having to make decisions that others might angst over for several months in only a few minutes she had decided to take his. "I think it sounds a very honest name. Hardworking," she had said and smiled at him.

"I like it. I think it suits you enormously," he replied, leaning over to kiss her once more.

"What will we do now?," Jo asked suddenly, reflecting that she hadn't even paused to consider what might happen next. They were the last of Section D and they had no home, no plans and she hadn't a clue what the future would bring.

"Well, tomorrow I guess we'll have to join the others and start with the tiresome business of rebuilding the city. But I think we can safety leave that for tomorrow and concentrate on just us for now," Lucas replied, his lips curving into a smile. "Claire has said she'll take Timothy this evening and then after that he could come and stay with us if you like."

"I would like that," Jo replied, her face lighting up.

"Jim has said he will lend me the use of an apartment. There's no power but its perfectly clean and undamaged by these past few weeks. And Claire went over earlier to leave us some dinner there so I thought we might have supper by candlelight. And then," he said, lowering his voice, " – then I think I might make love to you until you purr like a kitten."

"Oh," she said, looking up at him startled, "but you know I don't purr like a kitten," she replied doubtfully.

"No, not yet anyway," he said grinning. "But I'm pretty sure you will," he replied, moving closer to her and playfully twisting a strand of her golden hair in his fingers and after a minute she returned his smile.

They said their farewells to their wedding party and Lucas put his arm round her waist and she leaned in to him, finding his body provided welcome shelter from the chilly wind that signaled the onset of winter and together they began the journey to their first temporary home together.

After walking for some ten minutes, Lucas turned in response to the sound of his name in the distance to see Jim, who was unaware of the celebration and had just returned from a visit to the Prime Minister, round the corner. Lucas extracted his arm and waited for Jim to catch up with them and then clasped his hand warmly in his own.

Jim took the lead and walked slightly ahead of them, showing them the way to the apartment.

Before them lay the city of London, its outline softened by the romantic blush of the fading light.

Jim reflected that the city had stood for over two thousand years. It had seen the Romans come and go, stood firm as the country withstood raids by Vikings, grown and adapted to its new Norman rulers a thousand years ago. It had survived fire, plague, civil war, bombardment and tyranny. It had been burnt to the ground and rebuilt again. And it would survive this too – it would withstand this latest catastrophe and be rebuilt to emerge stronger still and to stand proudly once again as the nation's capital.

But it would not be easy. And he knew enough to know that it would take years not weeks. The job of a lifetime perhaps. And that the gentleness and comfort of the old world was gone and this brave new world would be harder and less forgiving than the old. A world of survivors. And he could see that Lucas North was a survivor, he knew that after eight years in a Russian jail he had to be. Unquestionably. He thought Lucas would do well in the new city.

The girl he wasn't so sure about. She looked more fragile to him.

But then he turned around to check on their progress and saw with surprise something he hadn't noticed before. That Lucas had taken her hand in his and when Jim looked closer at the expression on his face as he looked at her he knew that she too would be fine. Despite everything that had gone, despite his professional cynicism that went along with his job and after twenty two years of marriage, he still believed in love.

Half an hour later as he unlocked the door to the safehouse and handed the keys to Lucas and congratulated him and what was, he'd now learned, his new wife on their nuptials, he thought to himself that those two had probably a better chance of surviving and even at happiness as anyone else in the city. And, as turned, he caught a glimpse of Lucas' hand on his wife's stomach, a protective gesture as old as time that was unmistakable in its meaning. Jim smiled to himself. Where there was new life and love there was hope for the future.

THE END.

_So that is the end. I have always had a liking for apocalyptic type stories and for romance so this was fun to write. Please review and let me know how you liked the story._


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